Bloomberg recently reported that Apple is close to releasing an updated iPhone SE, which will be its first update to the low-end model since 2022. According to 9to5Mac, Apple is also planning to use the phone as a launching pad for its in-house 5G modems. The company purchased the majority of Intel's smartphone modem business for $1 billion back in 2019 after taking steps to be more self-reliant and aggressively recruiting staff to make that happen. But it has yet to release devices that use the modems designed by its internal team.
Apple and Qualcomm have somewhat of a complicated history. Qualcomm sued Apple in 2017, accusing it of violating its patents related to its phones' ability to quickly connect to the internet after they're switched on, as well as patents related to battery efficiency, graphics processing and apps' capability to download data faster. They eventually settled their patent dispute after Apple agreed to pay Qualcomm royalties and to enter a six-year licensing deal, as well as a multi-year wireless chipset supply deal.
At the moment, Apple still equips its devices with Qualcomm-made 5G modems. Qualcomm also announced last year that it will continue providing modems to Apple until 2026. It's possible that Apple wants to put its in-house modem to the test with just one iPhone first before it puts its technology in more devices.
The iPhone SE 4 will look similar to the iPhone 14 (pictured above), 9to5Mac says, and will be powered by an A18 chip with 8GB of RAM that will make it possible for it to have some Apple Intelligence features. It will reportedly feature Face ID and will no longer have a home button like previous iPhone SEs, and the device will apparently have the iPhone 15's 48MP wide camera and 12MP front cam. The iPhone SE 4 is expected to be unveiled next year, possibly sometime in the spring.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-will-reportedly-debut-its-in-house-5g-modem-with-the-iphone-se-4-103023682.html?src=rss
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against TikTok claiming the company violated a new child privacy law in the state. It's set to be the first test of Texas’ Securing Children Online Through Parental Empowerment (SCOPE) Act since it went into effect just over a month ago.
Under the law, parts of which were struck down by a federal judge, social media platforms are required to verify the ages of younger users and offer parental control features, including the ability for parents to opt their children out of data collection.
Paxton alleges that TikTok’s existing parental control features are insufficient. "However, Defendants do not provide the parents or guardians of users known to be 13 to 17 years old with parental tools that allow them to control or limit most of a known minor’s privacy and account settings,” the lawsuit states. “For example, parents or guardians do not have the ability to control Defendants’ sharing, disclosing, and selling of a known minor’s personal identifying information, nor control Defendants’ ability to display targeted advertising to a known minor."
The lawsuit also argues that the app’s “Family Pairing” tool isn’t “commercially reasonable” because it requires parents to make their own TikTok account and because teens are free to deny their parents’ requests to set up the monitoring tool. TikTok didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The app already prohibits most targeted advertising to anyone younger than 18.
"We strongly disagree with these allegations and, in fact, we offer robust safeguards for teens and parents, including family pairing, all of which are publicly available," the company said in a statement shared on X. "We stand by the protections we provide families."
The lawsuit adds to TikTok’s growing legal challenges in the United States. The company is currently fighting a law that could result in a total ban of the app in the United States. It’s also facing a separate Justice Department lawsuit related to child privacy.
Update, October 3, 2024, 8:05 PM ET: This story has been updated to add a statement from TikTok.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/texas-is-suing-tiktok-for-allegedly-violating-its-new-child-privacy-law-235432146.html?src=rss
OpenAI has debuted a new workspace interface for ChatGPT called Canvas. The AI giant unveiled its new ChatGPT workspace on its official blog and immediately made it available for ChatGPT Plus and Team users. Enterprise and Edu users will be able to access Canvas sometime next week.
Canvas is a virtual interface space for writing and coding projects that allows users to consult with ChatGPT on certain portions of a project. A separate window opens besides the main chat space and users can put writing or code on this new “canvas” and highlight sections to have the model focus on and edit “like a copy editor or code reviewer,” according to the blog.
Canvas can either be opened manually by typing “use canvas” in your prompt. Canvas can also automatically open when it “detects a scenario in which it could be helpful,” according to the blog post. There are also several shortcuts that can be used for writing and coding projects. For writing projects, users can ask ChatGPT for suggested edits or length adjustments, or ask it to change the reading level of a block of text, from graduate school level down to kindergarten. It can also add "relevant emojis for emphasis and color."
Coders can have ChatGPT review their code and add inline suggestions for improvements. It can also mark up your work with logs and comments to aid in debugging and make understanding your code easier. It's also capable of fixing bugs and port coding to a different language such as JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Java, C++ or PHP in Canvas mode.
OpenAI’s Canvas feature brings ChatGPT in line with other AI assistants that have separate workspaces to focus on certain areas of a project like Anthropic's Artifacts and the coding focused AI model Cursor.
Update, October 4, 12:55PM ET: This story was edited after publishing to include more context on the code and text functionality of the Canvas feature.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openai-rolls-out-canvas-its-newest-chatgpt-interface-230335185.html?src=rss
Tesla issued another recall for more than 27,000 Cybertrucks. This is the fifth time the electric truck has been recalled in the last year.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued the recall due to an image delay from the rear-view camera. The delayed rear-view camera failed to produce an image to the driver of what’s driving behind them within the legally required two seconds, “increasing the risk of a crash,” according to the official recall notice.
Reuters reports that the camera display is caused by a software glitch in the Cybertruck’s system. Some vehicles failed to complete the shutdown process before booting up again, causing a noticeable delay in the rear-view camera of up to eight seconds. So far, no crashes or injuries have occurred as a result of the software issue. Tesla is issuing a software update to address the rear-camera display delays.
This recall is just the latest in a string of notices and hiccups for the D-minus geometry project on wheels just this year. Tesla announced in April that it had to delay deliveries of the Cybertruck because of accelerator issues, a problem that prompted one of its most infamous recalls later that month due to sticky accelerator pedals.
Delivery delays led to another recall for the Cybertruck in June due to safety issues with the windshield wiper motor and trim. Several Cybertruck owners including some who just picked up their vehicle reported that the wipers failed to work.
Even virtual versions of the Cybertruck had to undergo repairs shortly after its release. The Cybertruck made an appearance in Fortniteas part of the game’s Summer Road Trip promotion but several players reported a weird glitch when they tried to morph a vehicle into Tesla’s signature truck. Epic Games pushed out a fix for the bug sometime later.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/teslas-fifth-cybertruck-recall-is-due-to-a-rear-view-camera-glitch-214029747.html?src=rss
Samsung TV Plus, the company’s FAST live TV app preinstalled on its TVs, is getting many more K-dramas. Over 4,000 hours of K-Dramas, K-Thrillers, K-Crime and K-Romance from Samsung’s home country of South Korea were added to the ad-supported streaming app on Thursday.
The content comes from partnerships with “Korea’s most acclaimed production companies,” including CJ ENM, NEW ID and the distribution company KT Alpha. Newly added series include Voice 4, Dark Hole and Doom at Your Service (a terrific title if ever there was one). The psychological thriller Beyond Evil will arrive soon.
New unscripted shows are also part of the package. These include food entertainment series like The Genius Paik and Three Meals a Day, along with travel shows House on Wheels and Youn’s Kitchen.
Samsung says it now has the best library of NEW ID and KT Alpha K-Movies in the US. The award-winning Burning (starring Steven Yeun), A Taxi Driver (not the De Niro one but the Kang-ho Song one) and Assassination (starring Squid Game’s Lee Jung-jae) are among those on the Samsung TV Plus now.
“K-Content is no longer niche – it’s one of the fastest growing and most watched categories globally, and Samsung TV Plus is uniquely positioned to deliver an unparalleled experience in this space with an endless offering of premium K-Content,” Salek Brodsky, Senior VP and General Manager of Samsung TV Plus, wrote in a press release.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/samsungs-fast-tv-plus-service-is-going-all-in-on-k-dramas-203821372.html?src=rss
Uber has entered a new deal to offer customers in select cities an option for self-driving vehicles. The partnership is with Avride, which used to be the self-driving unit for Russian conglomerate Yandex.
The multi-year deal will begin by introducing Avride's self-driving robots as a delivery option for Uber Eats orders in Austin, Texas. Later this year, the robots are expected to become available for delivery orders in Dallas and Jersey City, New Jersey. Autonomous driving is slated to begin service for Uber ride requests in Dallas in 2025. It will only be an option for "qualifying orders" on either Uber or Uber Eats, but the company didn't specify what those qualifications are.
Before spinning out as a new business concern, Yandex landed a similar deal in 2021 for its self-driving robots to make Grubhub deliveries to college campuses in the US. That year its autonomous vehicles reached a milestone of 6 million miles logged under "challenging conditions," mostly traveled in and around Moscow.
Uber had its own department exploring self-driving vehicles. However, it sold the unit to Aurora, another autonomous vehicle company, in December 2020.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/uber-teams-with-avride-to-offer-self-driving-vehicles-for-rides-and-food-deliveries-201622292.html?src=rss
Playing The Sims, the virtual life simulator created by sim game maven Will Wright, has always given its players the feeling that they can control life and death. A new expansion for The Sims4 takes that concept even further with the Life & Death pack that launches on Halloween.
The Life & Death expansion pack will take the world of Sims to a new plane of existence. It comes with new career paths, neighborhoods, haunted items and achievements about living life to the fullest until you die.
The biggest addition is a new suburb called Ravenwood that has three new neighborhoods to explore, including Crow’s Crossing, Whispering Glen and Mourningvale. You’ll be able to commune with the souls of the dead until they find a channel to the afterlife, make wishes with and investigate ancient shrines with mysterious powers and explore a cemetery. Each area also has a “Mysterious Merchant” who sells haunted objects and helps you pick out a final resting place during the “Try Before You Die Casket Sale.”
The Life & Death pack’s new achievements don’t just lean on the dead side of things. Your Sims can aspire to live a full life with the “Soul’s Journey” achievement track that offers a chance to “Rebirth a Sim” and create special “Bucket Lists” for young adult or older Sims. Once your Sim dies, they can come back as a ghost to complete unfinished business with the help of the living.
There’s also new career paths in the Life & Death pack that deal more with the darker side of the equation. Sims can pursue a profession on the Undertaker career track to become a mortician or a funeral director and achieve grisly rewards like a “Plague Mask” or a “Corpus Commendation Plaque.” The Reaper career path deals with the living and soon-to-be no longer living. Your Sim will work as the Netherworld Department of Death (NWDD) and train to become a soul reaper giving them the power to take life or give it back if your soul quota is too high.
The Life & Death expansion pack is available for pre-order for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4 and 5 and Xbox One and Series X|S. If you pre-order, you’ll receive some creepy collectibles including the Lasting Legacy Family Portrait, the Mournful Melodies Music Box and the Plumed Elegance Mask.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/find-a-new-life-in-death-in-the-sims-4s-halloween-themed-expansion-195544792.html?src=rss
Gemini Live, Google’s AI chatbot you can talk to like a person, is about to support more languages. The company is rolling out support for the generative AI virtual assistant in over 40 languages in the coming weeks.
Gemini Live is Google’s take on “free-flowing, natural conversations” in this new generative AI era. You can use it for things like brainstorming for events, diving down learning rabbit holes or practicing for job interview questions (and receiving real-time feedback). Although Google describes it as like talking with a friend, I’m unsure how many would do all of that.
Additionally, the tool will let you chat in two languages on the same device, and further expansion of supported languages is in the works. Multi-language support will also work with Gemini integrations for other Google apps and services, like Google Calendar, Tasks, Keep and Utilities.
You can set your preferred language(s) in the Android app. In the Google app, go to Settings > Google Assistant > Languages, and choose your first preference. If you want a second one, there’s an option below that to “Add a language.”
You’ll need an Android phone to use it. Google hasn’t yet announced any plans to bring Gemini Live to iPhone. At least for now, the company seemingly prefers to use it to attract folks to its own mobile platform.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-will-expand-gemini-live-to-over-40-languages-in-the-coming-weeks-194521661.html?src=rss
October Prime Day 2024 is half over but you can still save thanks to a slew of deals across the entirety of Amazon’s online storefront. Props to you if you came prepared with a wishlist of items you hope to buy on sale, because it can be easy to get distracted by the thousands of other deals available during this members-only shopping event. If any of the items on your list happen to be tech or tech related, Engadget has you covered. We’ve scoured Amazon to find the October Prime Day deals on tech that you can get this year. We’ll be updating this post regularly throughout the duration of Prime Day, so check back to see the latest discounts.
Apple deals can be hit or miss during Amazon Prime Day, but this year there are a number of good ones you can shop. Whether you've been on the hunt for a new Apple device for yourself or you know you want to pick one up as a gift, you can save a bit of cash if you do so now.
Apple AirPods Pro for $169 ($80 off): Apple's most powerful wireless earbuds have excellent ANC, a good sound profile and decent battery life, and thanks to a software update, they just got new features like voice isolation and Siri interactions (hearing aid features are coming soon).
Apple AirPods Max for $395 ($154 off): These expensive cans are a much better buy when on sale, and they boast excellent sound quality, good ANC, a luxe design and a solid battery life. They're available in Lightning or USB-C.
Apple Watch SE (2nd gen, GPS) for $170 ($79 off): The entry-level Apple Watch remains a fine choice for first-time smartwatch buyers, so long as you can live without the larger always-on display and more advanced health features of the pricier Series 10. This is another one of the lowest prices we’ve tracked for the 40mm model; the larger 44mm variant is similarly discounted at $200.
Apple 10th-gen iPad for $299 ($50 off): The new, baseline iPad updates a familiar device with a fresh design, improved performance, USB-C charging and a better battery life.
Apple 9th-gen iPad for $199 ($130 off): This model is on its way out, but $200 for an iPad is a solid sale price. This slab has a 10.2-inch display, an A13 Bionic chip and 64GB of storage — plus the antiquated physical Home button.
Apple 13-inch MacBook Air M2 for $749 ($250 off): Despite having a slightly older chipset, the M2 MacBook Air remains a great budget option for most anyone, save those who regularly push their daily driver to the limit with activities like video editing.
Aside from Black Friday, Amazon Prime Day is the best time of the year to pick up a piece of tech made by the online retailer. Usually, you can snag record-low prices on things like Echo speakers, Fire TV devices, Kindle ereaders and much more.
Amazon Echo Spot for $45 ($35 off): This recently revived smart display is billed as a smart alarm clock, and it features a customizable screen, big sound for its size and all the perks for Alexa voice commands. You can also grab it bundled with a free TP-Link smart light bulb.
Fire HD 8 tablet for $55 ($45 off): Amazon just released this new version of the HD 8 tablet, which includes more RAM, a better camera and new AI features not found on the previous model.
Ring pan and tilt security camera for $50 ($30 off): This security camera joined the Ring lineup only a few months ago, and this is the best price we've seen on it. It's part of a larger Ring sale that discounts home security gear by up to 50 percent.
Best Prime Day Anker deals
Photo by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
One can never have too many charging accessories, be they cables, wireless charging pads or power banks. Anker makes some of our favorites across all those categories, and you'll find deep discounts on Anker gear for Prime Day.
Anker MagGo 3-in-1 charging stand for $72 ($28 off): This stand supports an iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods simultaneously, and it comes with a 40W wall charger and a USB-C to C cable which which to connect all the necessary pieces together.
A number of Lego sets have already been discounted for October Prime Day. Some of our favorites come from the Star Wars, Super Mario and Harry Potter lineups, and you'll find savings up to 41 percent on those.
Headphones and earbuds are typically some of the most plentiful deals on Prime Day, which makes it a great time to consider upgrading or picking up a pair for someone as a gift. Whether you prefer over-ear headphones or in-ear wireless buds, you'll find steep discounts across all types for Prime Day.
The right kitchen tech can make all the difference in your cooking journey, whether you've just started to meal-prep or you have a multi-course Thanksgiving menu already planned. This fall Prime Day, we're seeing big discounts on some of our favorite small appliances from air fryers to pizza ovens to ice cream machines.
Ninja DualZone air fryer for $164 ($36 off): This 8-quart model of one of our favorite air fryers can cook two totally different foods at the same time, and you can set it up for both foods to be done cooking at the same time. The larger, 10-quart model is $50 off and down to $200.
Cosori 9-in-1 air fryer for $85.49 ($33.51 off): This newer air fry from Cosori has nine preset cooking modes and a six-quart capacity that makes it just the right size to cook a good amount of food without taking up too much space on most countertops.
Best Prime Day deals on robot vacuums and smart home gadgets
iRobot
Everyone needs a vacuum, regardless of if you prefer to do the chore yourself or automate it with a robotic gadget. Plenty of top robot vacuums (and cordless vacuums) are on sale for Prime Day, along with a number of other smart home gadgets we recommend.
Shark AI Ultra robot vacuum cleaner for $280 ($139 off): Shark’s robo-vac can clean both carpet and hard floors well and maps your home while it cleans so you can more easily send it to specific rooms and areas when you want. Its self-emptying base can also hold up to 60 days worth of debris.
Dyson V15 Detect Plus cordless vacuum cleaner for $570 ($180 off): This version of our top pick in our best cordless vacuum cleaner guide has superior suction power and can handle pet hair without breaking a sweat, plus it has 60 minutes of run time and comes with a number of cleaner-head accessories.
Best Prime Day deals on tech
Samsung
Yes, Black Friday is right around the corner, but it would be unwise to sleep on Prime Day tech deals (particularly if you already pay the annual fee to be a Prime member). We're seeing steep discounts on smartphones, TVs, streaming devices, gaming gear and much more this time around, making it a good time to pick up something for yourself or cross a few items off your holiday shopping list early.
Dyson V15 Detect Plus cordless vacuum cleaner for $570 ($180 off): This version of our top pick in our best cordless vacuum cleaner guide has superior suction power and can handle pet hair without breaking a sweat, plus it has 60 minutes of run time and comes with a number of cleaner-head accessories.
Dyson Airwrap for $500 ($100 off): Dyson's immensely popular hair styling tool uses the Coanda effect to help create waves and curls without excess heat.
LG 55-inch C4 evo OLED smart TV for $1,297 ($700 off): LG's midrange OLED sets, the C4 family includes upgraded Alpha 9 Gen 7 chip, improved brightness and a 144Hz max refresh rate. Most sizes are discounted at the moment.
SanDisk Ultra microSD card (1.5TB) for $89 ($61 off): If you don’t care about performance so much and just want a big chunk of space for as little cash as possible, this deal should work. You’ll have to deal with slower transfer speeds, but the discount takes roughly $20 off this 1.5TB card’s typical going rate in recent months.
Crucial X9 Pro portable SSD (1TB) for $85 ($10 off): The X9 Pro is the top pick in our guide to the best portable SSDs, combining dependable performance with a rugged compact design. We've seen this 1TB model go for much less in previously sales, but it's sat in the $90 to $100 range for almost all of the past year. This discount marks the lowest price we've seen since January.
Sonos Era 100 for $199 ($50 off): This is one of our favorite smart speakers thanks to its excellent sound quality, Trueplay tuning and Bluetooth support. Plus, if you have two of them, you can pair them for a stellar stereo sound experience.
Roku Ultra (2024) for $79 ($21 off): The brand new Ultra is 30 percent faster than the previous model, and it supports Dolby Atmos, Dolby Vision and Wi-Fi 6.
Elgato Stream Deck+ for $170 ($30 off): This upgraded version of the popular streaming controller includes eight programmable buttons, four dials and a touch strip, all of which work together to let you build the ultimate controller for your gaming or productivity setup.
Expired Prime Day deals
iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ robot vacuum and mop for $799 ($600 off): This higher-end robot vacuum and mop has a design that allows for better edge and corner cleaning, superior suction power and a self-emptying base that will automatically refill the mop cleaning solution when needed.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice, and stay tuned to Engadget.com for all of the best tech deals coming out of October Prime Day 2024.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-prime-day-2024-the-best-deals-we-found-from-apple-anker-sony-lego-and-others-before-october-big-deal-days-ends-tonight-190039430.html?src=rss
Amazon's October Prime Day sale kicked off today, and it includes a nice little savings on one of this year's highest-rated OLED TVs. We're referring LG's C4 OLED smart TV lineup, which has dropped in price, bringing the 55-inch model down to a record low of $1,297 — that's roughly $700 off. While it's typical to see TV prices fall throughout the year, starting basically soon after the TVs get announced, that doesn't change the fact that these are some of the steepest discounts we've seen since the C4 launched. You can save hundreds of dollars on other sizes, too.
As a refresher, the C4 is the company’s mid-grade line of OLED TVs. Each model includes the updated Alpha 9 Gen 7 chip, which makes menu navigation much snappier. They also boast improved brightness when compared to previous models. These TVs almost hit 1,000 nits of brightness, which is a little dimmer than a Mini LED panel and not quite on par with some sets that use advanced QD-OLED panels, but still better than many OLED alternatives.
There’s a maximum refresh rate of 144Hz, which is fast enough to get the most out of a PS5 or Xbox Series X and good for PC gaming as well. Along those lines, these sets are compatible with G-Sync and AMD FreeSync. The PC gaming bona-fides are strong with this one.
One of the cool features of this smart TV is enhanced compatibility with LG soundbars. Newly-released soundbars will connect wirelessly to the television, clearing away the endless clutter of cables from the living room.
The 65-inch model is also on sale for $1,497, which is a good $200 off that set's usual street price over the last few months. And for the big spenders, the massive 83-inch version is available for $3,997. That's $1,403 or so off that model's typical price.
Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice, and stay tuned to Engadget.com for all of the best tech deals coming out of October Prime Day 2024.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prime-day-tv-deals-include-lg-c4-oled-smart-tvs-at-record-low-prices-184104211.html?src=rss