Adobe’s updated consumer-focused Elements apps are here. Photoshop Elements 2025 adds new Magic Eraser-style object removal, depth of field adjustments and more. Meanwhile, Premiere Elements 2025 for video creators introduces dynamic titles, color correction tools and a simplified timeline.
The Elements apps, which Adobe debuted 23 years ago, take select features from the high-end professional suites and trickle them down to casual users. They’re like pared-down and easier-to-use versions of Photoshop and Premiere Pro for people who don’t want to learn pro graphic design or video-editing skills. The company also sells them as $100 each one-time purchases, rather than requiring a subscription. (You can also bundle both for $150.) With today’s AI features, the consumer-friendly apps let you do more than ever without much technical know-how.
Photoshop Elements 2025 adds an AI-powered Remove feature similar to the version in the pro Photoshop (along with Google’s Magic Eraser and Apple’s Clean-Up tool). Like those competing versions, Adobe’s tool lets you brush an object, person or animal, and it removes it, filling in a replacement background.
Elements 2025 also adds a faux portrait mode feature (Depth Blur) for any image. Select a focal point, and Adobe’s AI will add blur to create a sense of depth to simulate a wide-aperture lens. From there, you can tweak the blur strength, focal distance and focal range.
Adobe
A new color correction feature lets you select an area of a photo, pick a new color from a pop-up dial and slide it over until it looks how you want it. Photoshop Elements also has a photo-combining tool that lets you blend a subject from one image and a background from another — creating something new. The app also adds an AI motion effect feature that simulates movement blur for the subject.
Premiere Elements, Adobe’s consumer-level video app, incorporates new AI features, too. A new white balance tool and footage color LUTs (lookup tables) give you user-friendly color curves and presets — making it easier to tweak the overall mood.
Adobe
The video app also adds a simpler timeline. “See video tracks grouped together and audio tracks grouped together for easier navigation, find the editing options you use most in the new Quick Tools menu, lock individual tracks to prevent accidental changes, and more,” Adobe wrote in its press release. In addition, Premiere Elements adds dynamic titles with more text controls, and you can use Adobe Stock title templates without paying extra.
Both Elements apps fully support Apple’s M3 chip “for faster performance on Mac computers.” (Here are the full Windows and macOS system requirements for Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements.) The pair of apps will also have scaled-down web and mobile app counterparts for editing on the go.
Adobe’s MAX conference starts on October 14. That’s where the pro editor community can learn more about the new AI (and other) features coming to the company’s high-end subscription-based desktop apps.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/adobe-photoshop-elements-and-premiere-elements-updated-with-new-ai-features-130029684.html?src=rss
It's been about a year since Google first announced its Chromebook Plus initiative, a higher spec of hardware that also comes with software features you won't find on more basic Chromebooks. Google's getting into a pretty consistent every-six-month cadence with these updates, so today we're hearing more about some new hardware as well as some AI-powered features coming to various Chromebooks.
New Chromebook Hardware
Probably the most interesting update we're hearing about today is new hardware from Samsung: the Galaxy Chromebook Plus. I've liked some of Samsung's attempts at making high-end Chromebooks in the past, so I'm curious to see how this one performs. Google says its the thinnest and lightest Chromebook Plus, at 2.58 pounds and less than a half-inch thick. Despite that small size, it includes a 15.6-inch OLED screen, making it sound like this laptop will be similar to the 15-inch MacBook Air in feel.
Samsung
From a specs perspective it has an Intel Core 3 100U, 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, specs that should be more than enough for a good Chrome OS experience. Samsung claims 13-hour battery life, something I'd like to believe but don't yet. Too many Chromebooks tout long battery life and completely miss the mark, so I'm looking forward to seeing if any notable improvements have been made here.
Google
This is also the first Chromebook with a new key called the "Quick Insert" key. It replaces the existing Launcher key (where you'll find Caps Lock on most laptops), and it brings up a glorified right-click menu that does feel potentially more modern and useful. You'll find options for Gemini-powered "help me write," emoji and GIF search, a list of recently-opened websites, a Google Drive search field and a few other tools. Samsung's Galaxy Chromebook Plus is the first laptop with this key, but older Chromebooks can also pull up the menu with a keyboard shortcut (launcher key + F).
The Galaxy Chromebook Plus costs $699, making it the most expensive Chromebook Plus model we've seen yet. There's no exact release date yet, but it should be available this month.
Lenovo also has a new device, the Chromebook Duet 11". As the name suggests, it's a small convertible device, an update to one Lenovo originally released back in 2020. It keeps the same small form factor and detachable keyboard but has a newer MediaTek Kompanio 838 processor along with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. I'd recommend making sure you get that 8GB / 128GB combo, as anything less won't cut it in 2024. Lenovo also has seemingly slimmed down the bezels quite a bit compared to the original model, which should make the already-small package feel even more compact.
Lenovo
You can also get a stylus and use it with a free three-month Goodnotes subscription. Google says that Goodnotes has been optimized for Chrome OS, so it should provide a smoother experience now. That said, most Chromebook stylus apps haven't been terribly great, so this is another case when we'll want to try it out to see how it works. Lenovo says that the option with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage will cost $340, while the 8GB / 128GB model costs $390. Both come with the keyboard and stylus.
Google
AI perks and other software updates
At each of the last two Chromebook showcases Google has held, the company has teased new software features that would come in the future. And just as it did in May, Google is making good on some things it talked about in the past.
Probably the biggest is the Gemini-powered "help me read" feature which can, in Google's words, "summarize PDFs, articles or websites, all with a right click." It's something Google has talked about for a bit, and this first implementation of the feature is definitely not its final form — Google says that an update next year will let you highlight specific paragraphs and sentences you want more detail on.
Google
Other new features include Live Translate, which uses AI to automatically generate captions for whatever is on your computer, including video calls, movie files or a live YouTube stream. Similarly, the Recorder app can automatically create transcripts from what it records, complete with different speaker IDs and a summary. Live Translate is already available on Pixel phones, and the Recorder app is also on Android phones so it's not a big surprise to find them here.
Finally, Google is making audio and video quality on calls better. The "studio-style mic" feature uses AI to reduce noise and reverberation, and your video output can be automatically adjusted for better lighting. These features will work across any video call platform you can use on a Chromebook.
Google
The above features are exclusive to Chromebook Plus models, but Google has a handful of updates coming to all Chrome OS updates. For starters, all new Chromebook purchases come with three months of the Google One AI Premium plan, which includes Gemini Advanced, 2TB of storage and Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides and Gmail. (Chromebook Plus buyers still get it for a whole year, as announced in May.) Given that that's a $20/month plan, it's a solid perk.
Related, Google is making it easier for Chromebook users to use Gemini by including a shortcut to Gemini chat right in the Chrome OS taskbar. Hey, if you want people to try new features, you might as well put them directly in your face, right?
Two other features Google is introducing were first teased back in May. One is a focus timer, which implores you to pick an urgent task, a playlist and a timer. You'll then go into do not disturb mode while you work on what you're trying to get done. There's also a "Welcome Back" feature that pops up when you log in to your laptop. It pulls together apps and pages it thinks go together so you can resume what you were working on previously.
Like the hardware announced today, there's no specifics on when exactly this will all start rolling out, but you can expect to see it this month.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/samsungs-latest-premium-chromebook-combines-a-big-screen-with-a-thin-and-light-body-130012477.html?src=rss
Amazon Prime has released the official trailer for Like A Dragon: Yakuza, its live action adaptation of the action-adventure Sega game franchise mostly revolving around the yakuza Kazuma Kiryu. Unlike the teaser Amazon dropped in July, the trailer features a voiceover by Kiryu's actor Ryoma Takeuchi, as well as voice dialogues by other cast members. The series is set across two intersecting timelines in 1995 and 2005 in the fictional town of Kamurocho, which is based on Tokyo's Kabukicho.
It will cover the events of the first Yakuza game, with some changes to the story. Based on Amazon's own description of the series, it will show Kiryu and his friends Nishiki, Yumi and Miho plan a heist at an arcade that's apparently under the control of a powerful yakuza organization called the Dojima Family. Like in the game, Kiryu was imprisoned for 10 years and returned to Kamurocho in 2005 when he was released after finding out that his friends needed his help.
The trailer gives us a glimpse of how the show's story will unfold, as well as of the franchise's beloved characters, including Nishiki and fan favorite Goro Majima. It shows a chaotic Kamurocho with gangsters on bikes, gun fights, fist fights and explosions. The trailer also introduces us to a shadowy figure called the Demon of Shinjuku, who's going around killing people in the district.
Amazon is making the first three episodes of Like A Dragon: Yakuza available for streaming starting on October 24. The last three episodes will come out on October 31.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/watch-the-full-trailer-for-amazons-live-action-yakuza-adaptation-123027590.html?src=rss
What qualifies a video game as “depressing?” The most obvious answer is that game you simply cannot beat no matter how hard you try, but that’s not what we’re talking about here. Instead, we’re looking at games that just have a pall over them, whether it’s directly from story beats or a more subtle vibe given off by the visuals, music or activities the player has to participate in.
The games on this list don’t have a lot in common on the surface — there are big-budget action thrillers, smaller independent titles and at least one visual novel / deck-building game. But they can all put you in a somber mood, if that’s what you're looking for. Next time the rain is pouring down and you’re feeling a bit of melancholy, we have options to keep you company.
It was a messy Monday if you were a Verizon customer or wanted some PS5 gaming in the evening. First, Verizon mobile customers reported outages across the US on Monday. At around 9:30AM ET, hundreds of thousands of users flagged problems with their mobile service on Downdetector. Reports spiked at almost 105,000 at 11:20AM. Issues included the inability to send texts and a lack of cellular service outright. The issue centered on the East Coast and Midwest. The carrier hasn’t elaborated on what caused the issue. The FCC said it was “working to determine the cause and extent of these service disruptions.”
Hours later, the PlayStation Network experienced serious issues, kicking people off their matches and crashing online games worldwide. (Yes, that’s even bigger than the Midwest and East Coast.) Users couldn’t sign in on the PS5, PS4, PS Vita and PS3 or perform account maintenance on the web either. Streaming functionality was also knocked offline. Services came back online in the early hours of October. We’re also checking with Sony about the cause.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) fined Cruise, GM’s self-driving vehicle division, $1.5 million. The penalty was imposed for omitting key details from an October 2023 accident when one of the company’s autonomous vehicles struck and dragged a San Francisco pedestrian. Cruise is being fined for initially submitting incomplete reports, but it’s worse than that. Executives initially played a video of the accident during October 3 meetings with the San Francisco mayor’s office, NHTSA, DMV and other officials. However, the video stream was “hampered by internet connectivity issues” that concealed the part where the vehicle dragged the victim. Executives, who the report stated knew about the dragging, also failed to verbally mention that crucial detail.
The NHTSA wants Cruise to file a corrective action plan, along with others covering its total number of vehicles, miles traveled and whether they operated without a driver. It also has to summarize software updates that affect operations and more. Finally, Cruise will also have to meet with the NHTSA quarterly to discuss and review those reports.
It claims Samsung's Auto Blocker makes it difficult to install its app store.
Epic loves a courtroom battle. Its next challenger is Samsung — and Google. (Yes, Epic already won an antitrust lawsuit against Google last December, which found Google held an illegal monopoly on app distribution and in-app billing services.) Epic Games is claiming Samsung’s Auto Blocker feature is making it difficult for users to install the Epic Games Store on the latest Samsung devices. This is because Samsung now activates Auto Blocker, which only allows app installs from the Google Play Store and Samsung Galaxy Store, by default. To be honest, it’s pretty laborious to switch off. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney even suggests Google and Samsung are working together, though he admits there’s no concrete evidence for this claim.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-verizon-and-playstations-network-separately-hit-by-outages-110420743.html?src=rss
It's not just you — the PlayStation Network experienced serious issues, kicking people off their matches and crashing online games around the world. Based on Downdetector reports, the issue started shortly after 8PM Eastern time on September 30. Sony Interactive Entertainment has yet to release a statement about the problem, but it did update the PlayStation Network status page to show that several of its services weren't working.
Users couldn't sign in, create new accounts or edit their account details on the PS5, PS4, PS Vita and PS3. They couldn't do any account maintenance on the web either. Likewise, they couldn't stream games on the web or on any PlayStation console. They couldn't do any window shopping, as well: Users couldn't browse or search for games, redeem vouches, make any purchases or download previously purchased titles.
"We're working to resolve the issue as soon as possible," the company wrote in the status update. "Thank you for your patience."
As of 4:30AM Eastern time on October 1, however, the PSN status page now shows that all its services are up and running. It's still unclear what had happened and why PSN was down from the evening of September 30 to the early hours of October 1, but we reached out to PlayStation/Sony Interactive Entertainment for more information.
Update, October 02, 2024, 4:42AM ET: We updated this post after the PSN status page showed that all its services were up and running.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/the-playstation-networks-services-are-down-034439741.html?src=rss
On Monday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) fined Cruise, GM’s self-driving vehicle division, $1.5 million. The penalty was imposed for omitting key details from an October 2023 accident in which one of the company’s autonomous vehicles struck and dragged a San Francisco pedestrian.
Cruise is being fined for initially submitting several incomplete reports. The NHTSA’s reports require pre-crash, crash and post-crash details, which the company gave to the agency without a critical detail: that the pedestrian was dragged by the vehicle for 20 feet at around 7 MPH, causing severe injuries. Eventually, the company released a 100-page report from a law firm detailing its failures surrounding the accident.
That report states that Cruise executives initially played a video of the accident during October 3 meetings with the San Francisco Mayor's Office, NHTSA, DMV and other officials. However, the video stream was “hampered by internet connectivity issues” that concealed the part where the vehicle dragged the victim. Executives, who the report stated knew about the dragging, also failed to verbally mention that crucial detail in the initial meetings because they wanted to let “the video speak for itself.”
Investigators finally found out about the dragging after the NHTSA asked the company to submit the full video. The government agency says Cruise also amended four other incomplete crash reports involving its vehicles to add additional details.
The NHTSA's new requirements for Cruise include submitting a corrective action plan, along with others covering its total number of vehicles, their miles traveled and whether they operated without a driver. It also has to summarize software updates that affect operation, report citations and observed violations of traffic laws and let the agency know how it will improve safety. Finally, Cruise will have to meet with the NHTSA quarterly to discuss the state of its operations while reviewing its reports and compliance.
The order lasts at least two years, and the NHTSA can extend it to a third year. Reutersreported on Monday that, despite the fine, the NHTSA’s investigation into whether Cruise is taking proper safety precautions to protect pedestrians is still open. Cruise still faces probes by the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
To say the incident sparked shakeups at Cruise would be an understatement. The company halted its self-driving operations after the accident. Then, last November, the dominoes began to fall: Its CEO resigned, and GM said it would cut its Cruise investment by “hundreds of millions of dollars” and restructure its leadership. Nine more executives were dismissed in December.
Nonetheless, Cruise is trying to rebound under its new leadership. Vehicles with drivers returned to Arizona and Houston this year, and GM said it’s pouring an additional $850 million into it. Earlier this month, it began operating in California again, also with drivers — which, it’s safe to say, is a good thing.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/gms-cruise-fined-15-million-for-omitting-details-about-its-gruesome-2023-crash-210559255.html?src=rss
If you've been on the lookout for a killer deal on a perfectly decent tablet for streaming videos and catching up on some reading, hunt no more. Just ahead of the October edition of Prime Day, Amazon has slashed the price of the Fire HD 10 tablet to $75, which is a discount of $65. This matches the tablet's lowest price to date, which we saw during Prime Day in July.
The deal is for a model with 32GB of storage and ads on the lockscreen. Expanding the storage is easy enough thanks to the microSD slot, but to get rid of the lockscreen ads you'll need to buy a different version (which, at $90, is also currently $65 off).
You probably won't be doing as much creative work on a Fire HD tablet as you might on an iPad Pro. But for kicking back and catching up on a show or reading a Kindle book, Amazon's tablet certainly does the trick. It has a 10.1-inch Full HD display with a promise of up to 13 hours of battery life. Amazon says it delivers 25 percent faster performance than the previous model and it has 3GB of storage.
You can use the tablet to keep up with family and friends using messaging apps or hop on video calls with the help of the 5MP front-facing camera. You can also use a stylus to sketch in various apps. There's Alexa integration as well, of course — you can use the tablet to control smart compatible home devices and get a live view of connected security cameras.
One thing worth noting is that Amazon has yet to hold its usual fall devices event, so it may be using the October Prime Day sale to get rid of its current inventory of devices on the cheap before announcing upgraded models. Even if Amazon does have new tablets to show off in the coming weeks, though, you'll still have a solid device in hand if you snap this one up.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazons-fire-hd-10-tablet-drops-to-a-record-low-price-ahead-of-october-prime-day-202755183.html?src=rss
Update, September 30, 7:28PM ET: At 7:18PM ET, the company tweeted that its engineers had resolved the issue. The original story, which was updated twice after publish with statements from Verizon, follows.
Verizon mobile customers reported widespread outages across the US on Monday. Starting at around 9:30AM ET, hundreds of thousands of people flagged issues with their mobile service on Downdetector, which tracks user-submitted outage reports. The volume of reports spiked at almost 105,000 at 11:20AM, but were still reaching almost 59,000 at 12:52PM.
Many folks claimed they were unable to make or receive calls or exchange text messages. Those with an iPhone may be seeing "SOS" instead of the usual connection bars on the top right of their screen. That's a common sight when there's limited service or none at all. However, affected iPhone users can still make emergency calls via other networks.
A Downdetector heatmap suggested that the issue was most prevalent in New York, New Jersey, Georgia and elsewhere on the east coast and midwest. A narrow yellow band of reports was also emerging on the west coast as of 1:10PM ET. along with an intensifying heat spot in Los Angeles.
We are aware of an issue impacting service for some customers. Our engineers are engaged and we are working quickly to identify and solve the issue.
Verizon confirmed that service was affected for some customers. “Our engineers are engaged and we are working quickly to solve the issue,” the company wrote on X at 11:48AM. The cause of the outage is not yet clear.
As of 3:45PM ET, Verizon had yet to provide an update on the outage via X. User outage reports were still flooding into Downdetector, however, with almost 48,000 of them at 3:10PM.
At 5:04PM ET, the company tweeted that "service has started to be restored," and Downdetector reports of outages had dipped below 30,000.
Verizon engineers are making progress on our network issue and service has started to be restored. We know how much people rely on Verizon and apologize for any inconvenience some of our customers experienced today. We continue to work around the clock to fully resolve this…
At 7:18PM ET, the company tweeted that its engineers had "fully restored today's network disruption." The number of reports of an outage on Downdetector had dropped below 3,500. There has still been no word from the company on what caused the outage.
Verizon engineers have fully restored today's network disruption that impacted some customers. Service has returned to normal levels. If you are still having issues, we recommend restarting your device. We know how much people rely on Verizon and apologize for any inconvenience.…
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/verizon-says-its-network-is-fully-restored-following-an-hours-long-outage-194833420.html?src=rss
Reddit has just changed the rules so moderators of subreddits must get admin approval to switch from public to private, as originally reported by The Verge. This is being seen by many as an attempt to curb sitewide protests, as these requests must be approved by Reddit staffers. There will be no way for multiple subreddits to go private at once without Reddit having its hand on the lever.
The company put a little note on the support page that reads “if you’re changing your community type after community creation, you’ll need to submit a request.” This page doesn't offer any reasoning behind the decision.
Reddit
We reached out to Reddit to inquire about this most recent policy change and the company pointed us to a post on the subreddit r/modnews written by VP of community Laura Nestler. She wrote that “the ability to instantly change Community Type settings has been used to break the platform and violate our rules.”
So it looks like last year’s protests are absolutely connected to today's changes. Nestler also suggested that this is an issue of personal responsibility, writing that “communities should honor the expectations they set – public communities should remain accessible to all; private communities should remain private.”
On the topic of recent protests, switching from public to private is the exact way in which subreddits expressed dissatisfaction with last year’s API pricing changes. In that case, over 8,000 subreddits went private in tandem. This means that the subreddits became inaccessible to the general public, though they remained active for current members.
The site’s daily traffic suffered as a result. This allegedly had an impact on the functionality of Reddit itself, as there was a major site outage after all of those subreddits went private. The company blamed the protests for this outage, telling Engadget that "a significant number of subreddits shifting to private caused some expected stability issues.”
Not all protests involve switching a subreddit from public to private. Some moderators protest Reddit by labeling a subreddit as NSFW. This disallows advertising on the subreddit and makes it harder to search for. The company also put the kibosh on this move, as that kind of switch also now requires admin approval.
It’s worth noting that last year’s protests didn’t work. Reddit went ahead with those API charges, which forced third-party apps like Apollo to shut down. The company also went in and took complete control of one of the larger subreddits that participated in the protest. Now, there’s today’s change that effectively bans sitewide protests altogether.
Adding insult to injury, Reddit recently struck gold by licensing its content to train AI models. That deal will reportedly net the company around $60 million per year, but the users who actually created the content that’s being licensed will be getting approximately $0 per year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/reddit-policy-changes-make-sitewide-protests-nearly-impossible-183754240.html?src=rss