Tag Archives: Technology & Electronics

Apple Vision Pro goes on sale in the UK, Canada and Australia

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The Apple Vision Pro is now available for purchase in Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. Apple first expanded its availability in Asia by releasing it in mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore back on June 28, which is also when it started taking pre-orders for Europe, Canada and Australia. Now if you're from those regions, you can can easily purchase the $3,500 headset from Apple anytime you want.

Since the Vision Pro became available in the US in February, Apple has released more and more games on the App Store and Arcade for it, as well as new 3D films that you can access with an Apple TV+ subscription. The company also introduced Spatial Persona avatars, which takes your collaborators' avatars out of their restricted windows and places them right next to you in virtual space. It may sound creepy, but it's Apple's solution to making it feel more natural to work together and hang out on the Vision Pro. 

At WWDC this year, Apple debuted visionOS 2 for the headset, which will introduce spatial photos that provide depth to 2D images. What that means is, when you move your head while looking at a photo, you'll be able to see more details to the left and right of the original image. It will bring updated gesture controls to the headset, as well, letting you open the home view by holding you hand up then tapping and to bring up the time and battery details by flipping your hand over. Apple has already been beta testing the updated OS to prepare for its release, which is scheduled to take place sometime later this year. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-vision-pro-goes-on-sale-in-the-uk-canada-and-australia-123052740.html?src=rss

The second-gen Ring Indoor Cam is 50 percent off for Amazon Prime Day

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Amazon Prime Day is usually a good time to pick up a new Ring video doorbell and other security gear. One of the best Prime Day deals at the moment is the second-gen Ring Indoor Cam for $30, which is 50 percent off the usual price. The latest model of the camera allows you to get a live look at what's going on in your home from wherever you are with 1080p HD video. There's color night vision support as well.

When the Ring Indoor Camera detects movement, you'll get a real-time alert. You'll be able to select the area of coverage so you only get a heads up about significant movement. You can receive notifications via your phone or an Echo smart speaker and watch video from the camera on an Echo Show.

One handy feature will let you rewind the footage to a few seconds before an incident that triggered a motion event took place. This advanced pre-roll function will help you get a better understanding of what happened, Amazon suggests.

The camera comes with a swivel mount, so you can place it on a wall. But you'll need to be judicious about positioning. The camera is not battery-powered so you'll have to plug it into an outlet.

If you subscribe separately to the Ring Protection Plan, you'll be able to record all videos and review stored footage for up to 180 days (but just seven days for still images). You'll have the option of sharing videos too. The deal is part of a broader sale on Ring gear.

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/the-second-gen-ring-indoor-cam-is-50-percent-off-for-amazon-prime-day-173058773.html?src=rss

How false nostalgia inspired noplace, a Myspace-like app for Gen Z

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Already fascinated with y2k-era tech, some members of Gen Z have wondered what those early, simpler social networks were like. Now, they can get an idea thanks to a new app called noplace, which recreates some aspects of Myspace more than a decade after its fall from the most-visited site in the US.

The app officially launched earlier this month and briefly made the No. 1 spot in Apple’s App Store. Dreamed up by Gen Z founder Tiffany Zhong, noplace bills itself as both a throwback and an alternative to mainstream social media algorithms and the creator culture that comes with them. “I missed how social media used to be back in the day … where it was actually social, people would post random updates about their life,” Zhong tells Engadget. “You kind of had a sense of where people were in terms of time and space.”

Though Zhong says she never got to experience Myspace firsthand — she was in elementary school during its early 2000s peak — noplace manages to nail many of the platform’s signature elements. Each user starts with a short profile where they can add personal details like their relationship status and age, as well a free-form “about me” section. Users can also share their interests and detail what they’re currently watching, playing, reading and listening to. And, yes, they can embed song clips. There’s even a “top 10” for highlighting your best friends (unclear if Gen Z is aware of how much trauma that particular Myspace feature inflicted on my generation).

Myspace, of course, was at its height years before smartphone apps with a unified “design language” became the dominant medium for browsing social media. But the highly customizable noplace profiles still manage to capture the vibe of the bespoke HTML and clashing color schemes that distinguished so many Myspace pages and websites on the early 2000s internet.

noplace has a
noplace

There are other familiar features. All new users are automatically friends with Zhong, which she confirms is a nod to Tom Anderson, otherwise known as “Myspace Tom.” And the app encourages users to add their interests, called “stars,” and search for like-minded friends.

Despite the many similarities — the app was originally named “nospace” — Zhong says noplace is about more than just recreating the look and feel of Myspace. The app has a complicated gamification scheme, where users are rewarded with in-app badges for reaching different “levels” as they use the app more. This system isn’t really explained in the app — Zhong says it’s intentionally “vague” — but levels loosely correspond to different actions like writing on friends’ walls and interacting with other users’ posts. There’s also a massive Twitter-like central feed where users can blast out quick updates to everyone else on the app.

It can feel a bit chaotic, but early adopters are already using it in some unexpected ways, according to Zhong. “Around 20% in the past week of posts have been questions,” she says, comparing it to the trend of Gen Z using TikTok and YouTube as a search engine. “The vision for what we're building is actually becoming a social search engine. Everyone thinks it's like a social network, but because people are asking questions already … we're building features where you can ask questions and you can get crowdsourced responses.”

That may sound ambitious for a (so far) briefly-viral social app, but noplace has its share of influential backers. Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian is among the company’s investors. And Zhong herself once made headlines in her prior role as a teenage analyst at a prominent VC firm.

For now, though, noplace feels more to me like a Myspace-inspired novelty, though I’m admittedly not the target demographic. But, as someone who was a teenager on actual Myspace, I often think that I’m grateful my teen years came long before Instagram or TikTok. Not because Myspace was simpler than today’s social media, but because logging off was so much easier.

Zhong sees the distinction a little differently, not as a matter of dial-up connections enforcing a separation between on and offline, but a matter of prioritizing self expression cover clout. “You're just chasing follower count versus being your true self,” Zhong says. “It makes sense how social networks have evolved that way, but it's media platforms. It's not a social network anymore.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/how-false-nostalgia-inspired-noplace-a-myspace-like-app-for-gen-z-163813099.html?src=rss

Early Prime Day deal brings the Amazon smart thermostat down to only $52

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Amazon Prime Day hasn’t even officially started yet and we are already starting to see a massive influx of deals. For instance, the Amazon Smart Thermostat is on sale for $52. This is a discount of more than 30 percent and the best price we’ve seen all year.

The good news? This is one heck of a smart thermostat with a robust list of features. The bad news? It does require a C-wire or a power adapter kit, and these are sold separately. Once you get it hooked up though, the Amazon Start Thermostat allows for voice control over your climate, thanks to Alexa. It also lets you to make adjustments via the Alexa app on your phone, so you never have to suffer the indignity of walking downstairs at night when cold.

This is, basically, a Honeywell thermostat packed with Amazon’s smart tech, so it should be reliable and durable. One of the best reasons to go with a smart thermostat is to help reduce energy usage. It won’t automatically save you money, but the voice control means you can make adjustments when you think of it and app control means you can, for instance, shut down the AC from work.

It does lack a couple of the features found with its more expensive cousins, like the Google Nest thermostat. There’s no touchscreen controls and no motion sensors. Beyond those nitpicks, however, this is a mighty fine thermostat perfect for the hot summer months.

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/early-prime-day-deal-brings-the-amazon-smart-thermostat-down-to-only-52-153006809.html?src=rss

Starlink Mini is now widely available and doesn’t need a residential subscription

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You can now get a Starlink Mini in the US, wherever you are and even if you're not paying for a residential subscription. SpaceX started offering select users the new Starlink dish model that's small enough to fit in a backpack in late June. Despite its small size that makes it easy to transport and carry around, the Mini used to require an existing $150 standard service plan — you could only tack on the Mini Roam service for an additional fee of $30 a month. Now, you can get it on its own with a roaming service. 

The mobile regional plan costs $150 a month and will give you access to unlimited data. It's probably the better option if you live in an RV or travel to remote locations for extended periods of time. Meanwhile, the Mini Roam plan costs $50 a month and will give you access to 50GB of data, which is likely enough if you don't live on the road full time. Take note that you can use Mini Roam in motion anytime, as long as you're on land. The mobile regional plan has limited in-motion use and only works when you're going slower than 10mph, though you can choose to add data meant for in-motion use on a per-GB basis. 

Like Starlink's other terminals, you'll have to pay for the Mini up front. It will cost you $599 for the kit, which includes a kickstand, a pipe adapter, a power supply and a cord with a USB-C connector on one end and a barrel jack on the other. (As The Verge notes, you can plug it into a 100W USB-PD power bank if you don't have access to other power sources.) There's no Wi-Fi router with the kit, because it's already integrated into the dish, giving you one less component to carry. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/starlink-mini-is-now-widely-available-and-doesnt-need-a-residential-subscription-150039444.html?src=rss

Apple Prime Day deals are here early with the M2 Macbook Air discounted to a new low of $799

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Here's a juicy early Amazon Prime Day deal: you can snag the base, 13-inch M2 MacBook Air for only $799 right now. The laptop gleaned a $200 discount as part of Prime Day Apple deals, and the savings apply to all color options so you can score one in that beautiful Midnight finish. That's the price for the models without AppleCare+ — you'll have to spend just under $1,000 if you want that add-on.

This model isn't exactly top of the MacBook Air line anymore. It's been supplanted by the M3-powered MBA, which is now our pick for the best MacBook overall. But if you'd like to save some cash and still have a very capable Apple laptop to carry around, the M2 variant is our choice for the best budget MacBook — this latest discount just makes it even easier to recommend.

Engadget's Devindra Hardawar called the M2 Air a “near-perfect Mac” in his 2022 review and gave it a score of 96. One of the first things you'll notice is the 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display, which can reach a commendable 500 nits of brightness and has a 60Hz refresh rate. The inclusion of a 1080p webcam is welcome, while the triple-mic array does a solid job of capturing your voice for your calls. The speakers are impressive too, especially for a laptop that's just 11.3 millimeters thin and weighs only 2.7 pounds.

Despite that slender form factor, Apple has still kept fans of physical headphone jacks happy by retaining the 3.5mm port. There are two USB-C Thunderbolt ports and a MagSafe charging connector as well. You shouldn't have to worry too much if you leave your charger at home when you head to the office — the M2 MacBook Air's battery should easily last for an entire workday unless you're carrying out very power-hungry work like video editing.

The M2 MBA should handle everyday tasks with relative ease, and you'll be able to play a bunch of App Store and Steam games on it too (good luck doing anything else ever again if you install Balatro). One of our main reservations with the base M2 Air is that there's only 8GB of memory. That doesn't seem quite enough these days and unfortunately, Apple charges a premium for RAM upgrades. Still, if you just want a MacBook Air that checks pretty much all the boxes most people will need for a few years, this is a great option.

It's also worth noting that there are some cool features on the way when macOS Sequoia arrives later this year, including the ability to mirror your iPhone on your Mac and a new Passwords app. Apple Intelligence features are also coming to M1 and later Macs.

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/apple-prime-day-deals-are-here-early-with-the-m2-macbook-air-discounted-to-a-new-low-of-799-140716416.html?src=rss

Apple will allow developers access to its NFC technology, avoiding an EU fine

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After four years of back and forth, the European Union and Apple have finally come to an agreement on the latter's tap-and-go technology. The European Commission announced Apple made "legally binding" commitments to provide developers with their Near-Field Communication (NFC) technology, which is used for tap-and-go technology, and access iOS features like Face ID authentication and double-click to launch. The agreement saves Apple from facing an antitrust fine equal to up to 10 percent of its worldwide annual turnover — about $40 billion. 

Apple has also agreed to stipulations such as allowing users to make third-party wallets their default app. "It opens up competition in this crucial sector, by preventing Apple from excluding other mobile wallets from the iPhone's ecosystem," Margrethe Vestage, the EU's executive vice president in charge of competition policy, stated in the release. "From now on, competitors will be able to effectively compete with Apple Pay for mobile payments with the iPhone in shops. So consumers will have a wider range of safe and innovative mobile wallets to choose from." The commitments are binding for ten years, with an independent monitor ensuring Apple follows them across the European Economic Area (EEA). 

The European Commission opened its investigation into Apple in 2020, alleging that Apple was restricting rival mobile wallet developers from accessing necessary technology. Two years later, the regulatory body issued a preliminary view that Apple "abused its dominant position." 

Then, in early 2024, Apple finally offered to open up its NFC technology and report to an independent reviewer. The European Commission shared the terms publicly, encouraging Apple's rivals and other interested parties to give their opinion. The final agreement between the European Commission and Apple results from those consultations.  

The tech giant could still be on the hook for tens of billions of dollars in a different case after the European Commission issued its preliminary view that Apple violated the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The new law went into effect in March, and the European Commission soon opened an investigation into whether Apple prevented developers from telling users that they could pay less for services elsewhere. Apple currently takes a 30 percent commission on any purchases made through the App Store. The European Commission has until March 2025 to make a final ruling in the case. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-will-allow-developers-access-to-its-nfc-technology-avoiding-an-eu-fine-123026127.html?src=rss

The best laptop power banks for 2024

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Smaller battery packs are great for refiling phones and tablets, but if you need to keep a laptop juiced up while you’re far from an outlet, you’ll need something larger. For this guide, we tested portable chargers with at least a 20,000mAh (74Wh) capacity, but kept the upper limit below 27,000mAh (99Wh), since that’s about the maximum size allowed by the TSA in carry-on luggage. Some laptop power banks sport extra features like wireless charging or an AC plug so you can power small devices such as a travel printer or an LED lamp. But what all of them have in common is a larger size and higher price tag than standard battery packs. So if you don’t want to play a guessing game, these are the best laptop power banks we tested.

If you just need to keep a smartphone from dying before you can make it home, just about any power bank will do. But if you need to revive multiple devices or the substantial battery of a laptop, you’ll want something with a high milliamp-hour​​ (mAh) capacity. A power bank capable of delivering enough power to a laptop will have a capacity between 20,000 and 27,000 mAh.

Go higher than 27,000mAh and you won’t be able to take it on an airplane, which is why most portable chargers top out around that number. Since the voltage for most portable power banks is around 3.7 volts, a 27,000mAh battery translates to 99.9 watt hours — which is the maximum capacity the TSA will allow for carry-on luggage. (And note that these batteries can’t be checked, regardless of size).

If you want something even bigger than a laptop power bank, and don’t need to fly with it, you’ll likely want to look into portable power stations. These can be the size of a car battery or larger and can potentially fuel an entire weekend away.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the capacity listed in a power bank's specs is not what will be delivered to your devices. As I mentioned, the capacity of these banks is around 25,000mAh. Even the huge battery on a MacBook Pro has a mAh rating of around 5,000 - 6,000mAh, so you might think you’d get five full charges but in reality, you only get about a single 70-percent charge. The voltage is different (typically 3.7V for the power bank and 11.4V for a laptop) which makes the watt-hours, or the amount of energy each battery can hold, different (working out to 92Wh for the battery and 72Wh for the laptop). On top of that, in order to feed a charge from a power bank to a laptop, a voltage conversion takes place and that dissipates a decent amount of energy.

Without turning this into a physics lesson, this all means that a power bank with a 25,000mAh (or 92Wh) capacity will typically fill a 5,000mAh (or 72Wh) laptop battery to about 75 percent. In my tests, I averaged about a 60-percent efficiency rate between a power bank’s listed capacity and the actual charge delivered.

Every large power bank I’ve tested has at least three USB ports, with a mix of USB-C and USB-A, which should cover nearly any portable device you need to recharge — earbuds, phones, tablets, laptops, you name it. In addition to the different plug formats, some ports supply power at different wattages. For example, one USB-C port might be rated for 60 watts, while the one next to it is rated for 100 watts. So if you’ve got a device that’s capable of 70W fast charging, such as the new MacBook Air, you’d want to opt for the 100W port to get the best charging speeds possible. Note that devices with a smaller wattage draw won’t be negatively affected by connecting to ports with high ratings. For example, a Galaxy S24 Ultra, capable of 45W super fast charging, can happily plug into the 100W port. A device will only draw what it can take, regardless of what a port can supply. Just remember that the port, device and cable need to be at or above the desired wattage rating to achieve maximum charging rates.

Some of these larger batteries also have AC ports. It might seem like a natural fit to plug in your laptop’s power adapter for a recharge. But really, the AC port should only be for devices that can’t use USB — such as a lamp or a printer. Plugging a power adapter into the AC port only wastes energy through conversion. First, the battery converts its DC power to supply the port with AC power, then the power adapter converts that AC power back to DC so your laptop can take it in. And as you’ll remember from physics class, each time energy is converted, some is lost to heat and other dissipations. Better to cut out the middleman and just send that DC power straight from the battery to the device.

Also, you can use more than one port at a time with these devices; just remember that the speed of whatever you’re charging will likely go down, and of course, the battery is going to drain proportionally to what you’re refilling.

Just in the last year and a half that I’ve been testing portable power banks, wireless charging capabilities have noticeably improved. The first few I tried were painfully slow and not worth recommending. Now the wireless pads built into power banks are impressively fast — particularly, in my experience, when charging Samsung Galaxy phones (though the lack of a stabilizing magnetic connection like Apple’s MagSafe means they only work when rested flat on a pad). Most wireless charging connections can be used while other ports are also being employed, making them convenient for some mobile battlestation setups.

Of course, wireless charging is always less efficient than wired, and recharging from an external battery is less efficient in general. If you want to waste as little energy as possible, you’re better off sticking to wired connections.

All power banks are designed to be portable, but there’s a big difference between a pocket-friendly 5,000mAh battery and one of these laptop-compatible bruisers. Most of the latter weigh between a pound and a half to two pounds, which is a considerable addition to a backpack. Many of the options listed here have a display to tell you how much charge remains in the battery, which is helpful when you’re trying to judiciously meet out charges to your devices. If a bank has a wireless connection, the pad is usually on the flat top and any available AC connection is usually at one end. Both may require you to engage those charging methods. Don’t be like me and grumble loudly that you got a bum unit without pressing (and sometimes double pressing) all the buttons first.

For the past year and a half, I’ve been testing and using dozens of portable batteries for our other battery guide. Some of those batteries include the higher-capacity power banks you see here. I also got a hold of a few extra banks just for this guide to make sure we covered what’s available. I went for brands I’m already familiar with, as well as battery packs from well-received manufacturers I hadn’t tried before (like UGREEN and Lion Energy). I only considered banks with at least a 20,000mAh capacity and mostly stuck with those that rated 25,000mAh and higher.

Here’s everything we tested:

Due to shipping and travel issues, I wasn’t able to test two of the batteries I had slated: the HyperJuice 245W and the UGREEN Power Bank 25,000mAh. Once I’ve had a chance to see how these two perform — as well as any new worthy contenders that hit the market — I’ll update this guide accordingly.

I tested each power bank with an iPhone 15, a Galaxy S23 Ultra, an iPad Air (M1) and a 16-inch MacBook Pro with the M1 Pro chip. Even though these banks can charge multiple devices at once, I refilled one at a time, to make side-by-side comparisons more straightforward. I drained the batteries of the phones and tablets to between zero and five percent and then didn’t use any device as it refilled.

For the MacBook, I let it run down to 10 percent before plugging in the power bank. That's when most laptops give display a “connect to power” warning, as draining any battery to empty will compromise the battery life. I then used it as one might in a mobile office, with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, while connected to Wi-Fi and a VPN.

For each test, I noted how long a completely charged battery took to get a device back to full and how much of the battery’s capacity was used up in one charge. I also noted things like portability, apparent durability, helpful features and overall design.

For reference, here are the battery capacities of the devices I used:

  • iPhone 15: 3,349mAh

  • Galaxy S23 Ultra: 4,855mAh

  • iPad Air (5th gen): 7,729mAh

  • 16-inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro: 27,027mAh

The main difference is size. Phone power banks tend to have a capacity ranging from 5,000mAh to 20,000mAh and laptop powerbanks are typically rated between 20,000mAh and 27,000mAh. There’s no official definition, however. Laptop batteries are simply larger and need a bigger supply of power to give them a meaningful charge.

You can charge a power bank exactly as fast as the power bank’s internal mechanisms will allow. Most batteries are limited in how quickly they can accept and deliver a charge to avoid dangerously overheating. But to make sure you’re charging a bank as quickly as possible, make sure the wall adapter and the USB-C cable you are using have a high wattage rating — using a 5W power brick and a 10W cable will take a lot longer to refill your bank than a 65W wall charger and a 100W cord.

Look for a power bank with a rating of at least 20,000mAh. Slightly smaller batteries may work, but they won’t deliver a significant charge to your laptop.

A milliamp hour (mAh) is how much a battery can hold, and most portable batteries list their capacity using mAh. If you get a battery rated at 20,000mAh or above, it should be able to charge your laptop.

Using mAh to discuss laptop batteries can be confusing. Due to differing voltages, you can’t directly compare the mAh ratings of a power bank battery to a laptop battery. Using watt-hours is a better gauge, as that calculation takes voltage into account.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/best-laptop-power-bank-120040388.html?src=rss

The Morning After: Everything Samsung revealed at Galaxy Unpacked 2024

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There weren’t too many surprises (thanks, leaks!) at Samsung’s Unpacked event, held live in Paris with satellite events in New York, London and elsewhere. The big announcement was Samsung’s foray into a new kind of wearable, the smart ring.

Samsung claims it’s been able to cram its existing sensor tech into the Galaxy Ring’s smaller form factor. Made of titanium, it packs in an accelerometer and PPG sensors to measure blood flow and detect skin temperature. It can track metrics such as sleep score, movement during your slumber, heart rate, respiratory rate and menstrual cycles. Notably, there’s no subscription required to tap into all the tracking and metrics. Take that Oura and Fitbit. The Galaxy Ring will run you $400 when it launches on July 24.

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Engadget

Then there are the foldables. This year, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 gets the most attention, with upgraded camera sensors (50-megapixel wide and 12MP ultra-wide sensors), which put the smaller foldable on par with the S24. There’s also a bigger battery too.

Meanwhile, the Z Fold 6 hasn’t got many major spec bumps (there’s the annual note that screens are tougher and both foldables feature even more enhanced hinges). Both devices pack an Interpreter app, which uses both the main and cover screens to swap translations and streamline communications. There are even more generative AI tricks too.

Check out everything announced right here.

— Mat Smith

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6: Brighter, lighter and faster, but is that enough?

Strava launches a family plan

Amazon’s Kindle Scribe drops to a new record low ahead of Prime Day

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X has faced multiple legal battles since Elon Musk’s takeover. One suit concerns over 6,000 employees Musk laid off following his acquisition of the company and complains that he didn’t give them full severance. The X boss won a motion to dismiss the class action suit.

Judge Thompson found the Twitter severance plan did not qualify under the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) because the employees received notice of a separate payout scheme prior to the layoffs. She ruled that the severance program adopted after Musk’s takeover applied to these former employees. Thompson’s order noted the plaintiffs could amend their complaint for non-ERISA claims.

Continue reading.

Amazon says it’s now sourcing all its power from clean energy sources, seven years ahead of its own schedule. The company’s claim of achieving 100 percent clean electricity is based, in part, on billion-dollar investments in over 500 solar and wind initiatives. The company’s logic is that the energy these projects generate equals the electricity its data centers consume. But that energy goes to the general power grid, not direct to Amazon-specific power sockets.

Continue reading.

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Xbox is increasing the price of its Game Pass again. Beginning on July 10, new subscribers will pay the updated price, while current subscribers will see the higher costs take effect starting September 12. For the US, Game Pass Ultimate prices will increase from $17 a month to $20 a month, while a year of access to Game Pass Core will jump from $60 to $75. Xbox Game Pass Standard is a new addition, for $15 per month. This plan offers access to Game Pass titles but without day-one release access to Microsoft-owned titles or Xbox Cloud Gaming.

What happened to Game Pass? It was such a great deal — it still is, arguably — but Microsoft is making it increasingly confusing.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-everything-samsung-revealed-at-galaxy-unpacked-2024-111610216.html?src=rss

Google Photos will soon seamlessly transfer to Apple’s iCloud

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Google and Apple are launching a new tool to transfer images from Google Photos to iCloud. As part of the Data Transfer Initiative (DTI), the tool will add iCloud transfers to Google Takeout’s export options. 9to5Mac first spotted the announcement.

The tool, which will roll out over the next week, automates the transfer process from Google Photos to iCloud, so you don’t have to download, upload or do anything beyond initiating the process on the web. An Apple support page says it could take several hours to a few days to complete, depending on the transfer size.

Transferring your pictures from Google to iCloud won’t delete them from Google Photos, so you’ll have to do that manually if you want. In addition, the service won’t work for child accounts, Managed Apple ID accounts (those set up through IT admins) or iCloud accounts with Advanced Data Protection turned on.

The tool follows the 2021 launch of one that does the inverse: moving your images from iCloud to Google Photos.

The DTI launched in 2023 as a collaboration between Apple, Google and Meta. Officially, it was formed to further the goals of the open-source Data Transfer Project (DTP), which began five years earlier. Unofficially, well, it’s probably not a coincidence the DTI commenced a couple of months before the European Commission named its “gatekeepers” under the Digital Markets Act, and the DTI’s goals happen to align with the governing body’s regulations. (Fancy that!)

Once it’s live (we aren’t seeing it available just yet), you can begin the process in Google Takeout. In the meantime, you can read Google and Apple’s instructions for all the fine print.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-photos-will-soon-seamlessly-transfer-to-apples-icloud-205521915.html?src=rss