Tag Archives: Handheld & Connected Devices

Samsung just revealed the Galaxy Z Flip 6, putting the S24’s best specs in a compact foldable

Posted on by

Samsung just announced the Galaxy Z Flip 6 smartphone at its most recent Unpacked event and it's a doozy of an update that squeezes some of the S24’s best features into a compact foldable. There’s a new design, an updated camera system and the biggest battery in a Z Flip to date.

The camera system features an updated design with a color-matched lens housing. There’s a new 50MP main camera and a 12MP ultra-wide sensor, which is the same as the base Galaxy S24. This system includes auto-zoom framing and an AI algorithm for better portraits.

The 4,000mAh battery is the biggest ever in this product category. Once again, this is the same size of battery as found with the Galaxy S24. Samsung also touts its quick-charging capabilities, saying that the phone can reach a 50 percent charge in just 30 minutes. That’s a pretty decent metric.

Four phones.
Engadget

The base RAM has gotten an upgrade, 12GB up from 8GB, and the 6.7-inch AMOLED main screen boasts a 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2,600 nits. The cover screen is a 3.4-inch Super AMOLED 60Hz display. Software wise, there are some new interactive and generative wallpapers and a photo ambient mode that changes color based on the time and weather. The phone can access a bunch of new widgets, with all new size combinations that allow for multiple widgets on a single cover screen. There’s a new texting feature that analyzes the past seven messages to help come up with suggested replies.

As for the design, there are some new colors, like silver, yellow and blue. Samsung is also selling some exclusive colors, such as white and peach. Preorders are available right now and there’s a bonus for early adopters. Ordering now will automatically bump you up to the next storage size. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 starts at $1,100.

Catch up on all the news from Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked 2024 here!

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-just-revealed-the-galaxy-z-flip-6-putting-the-s24s-best-specs-in-a-compact-foldable-130018981.html?src=rss

The Morning After: US officials help take down AI-powered Russian bot farm with nearly 1,000 fake X accounts

Posted on by

US officials and their allies have identified and taken down an artificial intelligence-powered Russian bot farm comprising almost 1,000 accounts. These accounts were able to spread disinformation and pro-Russian sentiments across X, formerly Twitter. The Justice Department has revealed the scheme was made possible by software created by a digital media department in RT, a Russian state-controlled media outlet.

According to a cybersecurity advisory from the FBI, intelligence officers from the Netherlands, and cybersecurity authorities from Canada, it centered on a tool called Meliorator, which can create “authentic appearing social media personas en masse,” generate text messages as well as images and mirror disinformation from other bot personas. For example, one account with the name Ricardo Abbott, which claimed to be from Minneapolis, posted a video of Russian President Vladimir Putin justifying Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

The Justice Department is still tracing and trying to find all 968 accounts used by the Russian actors to disseminate false information. X has shared information with authorities on all the identified accounts and has already suspended them.

— Mat Smith

Logitech G launches a new $80 wireless recharging mouse

Apple TV’s new Time Bandits show just got a glorious trailer and a July release date

Engadget’s guide to the best smart plugs

​​You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. Subscribe right here!

Samsung’s next big event kicks off in a few hours. We’ll be covering all the announcements (and testing out devices), so tune into our liveblog. We expect to see the Galaxy Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6, but their updates could be minor, as well as Samsung’s newest wearable, the Galaxy Ring. If you want some insight into what to expect, you can read up on that right here.

Bookmark our liveblog.

Apple blog TUAW returns as an AI content farm

With not-so-new content from writers who haven’t worked there in more than a decade.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) has returned online nearly a decade after shutting down. But the new owners of the once venerable source of Apple news appear to have transformed it into an AI-generated content farm. The site, which ceased operations in 2015, began publishing ‘new’ articles, many of which appear nearly identical to content published by MacRumors and other publications over the past week. Adding to the grossness, the site also has an author page featuring former writers’ names and photos that appear to be AI-generated.

Continue reading.

Eton College, the elite historic British boarding school — with famous alumni Princes William and Harry, Ian Fleming and Tom Hiddleston — has instituted a new mobile phone policy for its first-year students starting in September. Those students will have to leave their smartphones at home and bring their SIM card to school to put in an old-school Nokia cell phone with a simple number pad, which can only make phone calls and send text messages.

Continue reading.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-us-officials-help-take-down-ai-powered-russian-bot-farm-with-nearly-1000-fake-x-accounts-111659112.html?src=rss

Insta360’s Flow Pro smartphone gimbal uses Apple’s DockKit to track you

Posted on by

Insta360 has launched the Flow Pro smartphone gimbal with a feature we've never seen on any rival product: Apple DockKit support. That allows it to track you around automatically while you present, perform or do other activities, much like DJI's popular Osmo Pocket 3 gimbal. 

DockKit support effectively gives you a robotic cameraman. Just set the Flow Pro up on its built-in tripod that extends from the handle and pair it with your iPhone. Then, attach your iPhone to the gimbal using the magnetic phone clamp or MagSafe-compatible magnetic phone mount and you're ready to shoot.

From there, it'll use your iPhone's front or rear camera and the native camera app to track and focus on your or your subject. That gives you the freedom to move around, knowing it'll keep you in frame and in focus. It also works with over 200 third-party iOS apps including FaceTime, Zoom and TikTok.

Insta360's Flow Pro smartphone gimbal uses Apple's DockKit to track you
Insta360

The only other DockKit product we've seen to date is Belkin's Stand Pro iPhone dock, but that has no gimbal functionality. The Flow Pro, however, is a more powerful version of Insta360's original Flow gimbal (and is cheaper than Belkin's product to boot). To that end, it offers three-axis mechanical shake reduction that's far superior to your phone's electronic stabilization. 

It also comes with the company's AI-powered subject tracking with features like tracking recovery (re-acquiring a subject after losing it), person re-identification and slo-mo tracking. Insta360 also introduced Deep track 3.0 that adds 360-degree infinite pan tracking, meaning it can rotate 360 degrees horizontally while tracking subjects. It also supports animal tracking (dogs, cats and horses) and adds an LED tracking ring so you can see if it's following your subject at a quick glance.

Insta360's Flow Pro smartphone gimbal uses Apple's DockKit to track you
Insta360

Flow Pro also offers a selfie stick that extends to 215mm (8.5 inches), a built-in cold shoe to add a mic or other accessories and a 2,900mAh power bank to charge your iPhone. Other features include "one-step rapid deploy" to unfold the gimbal in one motion, 10-hour battery life, a SmartWheel for quick access to shooting controls, and four gimbal modes (auto, follow, pan follow and FPV).

The Insta360 is now available in the US and worldwide for $149 at select retailers. It includes a magnetic phone clamp, charge cable, grip cover and protective pouch, with other accessories like a spotlight, magnetic phone mount and decorative inserts sold separately.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/insta360s-flow-pro-smartphone-gimbal-uses-apples-dockkit-to-track-you-010029542.html?src=rss

A British boarding school will make students use boring old Nokia phones

Posted on by

A lot of school districts have instituted smartphone bans for students during the school day but a British boarding school has taken it one step further. Wait, scratch that. They’ve taken it one step back.

Eton College, the historic and elite British boarding school with famous alumni such as Prince William and Harry, Ian Fleming and Tom Hiddleston, has instituted a new mobile phone policy for its first-year students starting in September. Those students will have to leave their smartphones at home but bring their SIM card to school and put it in an old school, offline Nokia cell phone with a simple number pad that can only make phone calls and send text messages, according to CBS News.

The British boarding school’s policy is based on guidelines from the UK government that allows principals to enact smartphone bans on students during the school day.

Let’s hope nobody tells school officials about Snake or those poor kids may have to actually pay attention and learn something.

Smartphone bans and guidelines are starting to seep into American school districts as well. According to data from Govspend, 41 states have at least one school district that instituted a rule requiring students to place their smartphones in magnetically sealed Yondr pouches when they go to school.

The Los Angeles Unified School District passed a district-wide school phone ban for students in June that prompted California Gov. Gavin Newsom to call for a similar law on the state level.

Meanwhile in New York City, the city’s chancellor of public schools David Banks said he plans to institute a phone ban in the coming weeks. New York Governor Kathy Hochul is working with the state’s legislature to pass two new bills that would only allow students to carry phones that don’t have access internet access

Even Florida (yes, that Florida, the one that’s home to 10 million Florida Mans) has a statewide smartphone in schools ban that also requires schools to block students from accessing social media on its Wifi networks.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-british-boarding-school-will-make-students-use-boring-old-nokia-phones-215048983.html?src=rss

Prime Day deals bring the Fire TV Stick 4K Max down to a record low of $35

Posted on by

Amazon Prime Day has arrived and it's brought a bunch of great discounts on Amazon devices, including Fire TV streaming gear. Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K Max is just $35 for the shopping event, which is $25 off and a record-low price. Most other Fire TV devices are on sale as well, including the Fire TV Stick Lite for just $15.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Max is Amazon's most capable portable streaming device. Just plug it into your TV's HDMI port (or a TV while on vacation), and you'll instantly have access to all of your favorite streaming apps, like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon's own Prime Video. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max supports fast WiFi 6E connectivity, and in addition to its 4K resolution it offers Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and HLG to make your shows and films look their best.

With a 2GHz quad-core processor and 16GB of onboard storage (double what the cheaper Fire TV devices have), the Fire TV Stick 4K Max should be zippy and have enough space to your favorite apps and games. Its WiFi 6E support also makes it a great option for streaming games with Amazon Luna. The bundled Alexa Voice Remote Enhanced gives you instant access to Amazon's virtual assistant, allowing you to search for shows or just ask about the weather.

If you don't need all the bells and whistles of the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, there's also the Fire TV Stick Lite on sale for $15, one of our favorite inexpensive streaming devices. And if you need Ethernet and hands-free Alexa support, Amazon's Fire TV Cube is now just $100 as part of this Prime Day Deal.

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

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/prime-day-deals-bring-the-fire-tv-stick-4k-max-down-to-a-record-low-of-35-123038175.html?src=rss

Logitech G launches a new $80 gaming mouse

Posted on by

Logitech G has a new toy for gamers to try out. The brand — which is the gaming arm of Logitech — has released the G309 LIGHTSPEED Wireless Gaming Mouse for $80 in black and white. The mouse is Powerplay compatible, meaning you can use it without an AA battery if you also own the Logitech G PowerPlay Wireless Charging System.

The new mouse also has Logitech's Hero 25K sensor, which provides exceptional accuracy while being power-efficient. It offers 400 IPS with a sensitivity of up to 25,600 DPI. Plus, without a battery, it weighs just over one-tenth of a pound (68 grams) and just under two-tenths of a pound (86 grams) with one AA battery. 

Speaking of battery, the Logitech G309 LIGHTSPEED Wireless Gaming Mouse lasts for 300 hours of ongoing gameplay at a 1ms report rate in LIGHTSPEED with just one AA alkaline battery. If you switch the mouse to Bluetooth, that amount doubles to 600 hours. 

"Our LIGHTSPEED technology, in conjunction with our Hero sensors, has advanced to the point where all gamers, from the world's elite esports pros athletes to the first time gamer, know they can trust Logitech G mice to perform every time," Ujesh Desai, vice president and general manager of Logitech Gaming, said in a statement.

The Logitech G309 LIGHTSPEED Wireless Gaming Mouse is available now and includes a LIGHTSPEED USB receiver, USB cable extender, grip stickers and an AA battery. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/logitech-g-launches-a-new-80-gaming-mouse-120004581.html?src=rss

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Z Fold 6 product pages have been leaked

Posted on by

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 will come with a 50-megapixel rear camera for the first time, a bigger battery than any of its predecessors and a bunch of AI features, according to the product pages leaked by Evan Blass on Substack. Also known as @evleaks on X/Twitter and other avenues, Blass is known to have a good track record for leaking accurate information about unreleased devices. This time, evleaks has obtained and released copies of product pages for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 ahead of an Unpacked event happening on July 10, though the details aren't absolutely certain until Samsung itself announces them. 

Previous Galaxy Z Flip models only had 12-megapixel rear cameras, so the Flip 6's 50-megapixel wide camera (paired with a 12-megapixel ultrawide) is a huge upgrade. Unlike the previous versions that were equipped with 3,700 mAh batteries, the upcoming model will apparently have a 4,000 mAh battery that can power up to 20 hours of internet browsing on WiFi, up to 23 hours of video playback and up to 68 hours of music playback. Meanwhile, the model's display dimensions, for both its main and external displays, are similar to the Z Flip 5. 

One of the phone's most interesting AI tools, perhaps, is its personal interpreter function that can display translations on both of its screens. That way, if you're relying on the feature to talk to somebody, they can read what you're saying in their language on the external display. It could be an invaluable tool for traveling, if it's at least reasonably accurate. When the phone is folded, the Chat Assist feature will give you a way to text from the front display by giving you a selection of suggested replies. Google's Circle to Search will also be available on the device.  

Samsung didn't give the Galaxy Z Fold 6 major upgrades and changes, but the new model will come with a slightly larger front display, based on the leaked product pages. Its main display is just slightly smaller and the phone itself is a bit thinner, which make it lighter than previous models, even though its battery capacity remains the same. Like the Flip 6, the upcoming Fold will come with AI-powered features, such as Note Assist that can automatically transcribe recordings and summarize notes for you. It can also display translations from its personal interpreter on both sides of the main screen, and it has Google's Circle to Search function that you can use with the S Pen. 

The company is expected to announce both devices, as well as new accessories like the Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Watch 7, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro at its Unpacked event in a few days. 

A phone displaying illustrations of food.
Evan Blass / @evleaks on X

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-6-and-z-fold-6-product-pages-have-been-leaked-015420863.html?src=rss

Twilio hack leaves Authy users exposed to text-messaging scams

Posted on by

If you use Authy, update your app immediately. Twilio, the messaging company that owns the two-factor authentication service, confirmed to TechCrunch on Wednesday that hackers breached Twilio and acquired mobile phone numbers for 33 million users.

Twilio published a statement on its website also confirming the hack. “Twilio has detected that threat actors were able to identify data associated with Authy accounts, including phone numbers, due to an unauthenticated endpoint,” the statement reads. “We have taken action to secure this endpoint and no longer allow unauthenticated requests.”

The company added that there was no evidence that the hackers accessed Twilio’s systems or sensitive data. But updating to the latest version of the iOS and Android apps (on any devices you’re running) is critical as they include new security updates.

Twilio stressed that Authy accounts weren’t compromised. However, the hackers (and anyone they share the data with) could “try to use the phone number associated with Authy accounts for phishing and smishing attacks.”

If you aren’t familiar with the term, smishing is the text-message equivalent of phishing. So, if you have an Authy account, be extra cautious about any unexpected texts that appear to come from trusted sources, especially Authy or Twilio.

Rachel Tobac, a social engineering expert and CEO of SocialProof Security, illustrated to TechCrunch what that may look like. “If attackers are able to enumerate a list of user’s phone numbers, then those attackers can pretend to be Authy/Twilio to those users, increasing the believability in a phishing attack to that phone number,” Tobac said.

“We encourage all Authy users to stay diligent and have heightened awareness around the texts they are receiving,” Twilio stressed.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/twilio-hack-leaves-authy-users-exposed-to-text-messaging-scams-165156650.html?src=rss

Twilio hack leaves Authy users exposed to text-messaging scams

Posted on by

If you use Authy, update your app immediately. Twilio, the messaging company that owns the two-factor authentication service, confirmed to TechCrunch on Wednesday that hackers breached Twilio and acquired mobile phone numbers for 33 million users.

Twilio published a statement on its website also confirming the hack. “Twilio has detected that threat actors were able to identify data associated with Authy accounts, including phone numbers, due to an unauthenticated endpoint,” the statement reads. “We have taken action to secure this endpoint and no longer allow unauthenticated requests.”

The company added that there was no evidence that the hackers accessed Twilio’s systems or sensitive data. But updating to the latest version of the iOS and Android apps (on any devices you’re running) is critical as they include new security updates.

Twilio stressed that Authy accounts weren’t compromised. However, the hackers (and anyone they share the data with) could “try to use the phone number associated with Authy accounts for phishing and smishing attacks.”

If you aren’t familiar with the term, smishing is the text-message equivalent of phishing. So, if you have an Authy account, be extra cautious about any unexpected texts that appear to come from trusted sources, especially Authy or Twilio.

Rachel Tobac, a social engineering expert and CEO of SocialProof Security, illustrated to TechCrunch what that may look like. “If attackers are able to enumerate a list of user’s phone numbers, then those attackers can pretend to be Authy/Twilio to those users, increasing the believability in a phishing attack to that phone number,” Tobac said.

“We encourage all Authy users to stay diligent and have heightened awareness around the texts they are receiving,” Twilio stressed.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/twilio-hack-leaves-authy-users-exposed-to-text-messaging-scams-165156650.html?src=rss

Early Prime Day deals bring the Samsung Galaxy S9+ tablet down to a record-low price

Posted on by

Investing in a new tablet can be costly but early Prime Day deals are making it a bit more reasonable. Ahead of Amazon Prime Day, the online marketplace has discounted Samsung's Galaxy S9+ tablet by 25 percent, bringing its cost down to an all-time low price of $750 from $1000. This deal is available for the 256GB Beige model, while the Graphite model is down to $800 from $1,000 — still lower than we've previously seen it (let's hear it for the best Prime Day deals).

The Samsung Galaxy S9+ tablet is part of a series of great tablets that includes the Galaxy S9 Ultra and Galaxy S9 — the latter of which is our choice for 2024's best Android tablet. The Galaxy S9+ is a slightly larger model (12.4-inch screen, compared to 11-inch), with Vision Booster and a 2800p x 1752p max screen resolution. Plus, it has exceptionally thin bezels and an Armor Aluminum finish. 

Samsung's Galaxy S9+ is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, providing it with faster processing. The device also offers 12GB of RAM, 10,090mAh battery and an IP68 dust and water resistance rating.

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-deals-bring-the-samsung-galaxy-s9-tablet-down-to-a-record-low-price-142946216.html?src=rss