Posts Tagged: launch

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S6 Lite Set To Launch A Third Time

Samsung is expected to give a second refresh to its Tab S6 Lite soon. Here’s everything we know yet.
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The Nothing Phone 2a Design And Launch Date Are Finally Confirmed

Nothing appears all set to launch the Phone 2(a), and we have confirmed details on the phone’s design and launch date.
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The Galaxy Ring: Features & Rumored Launch Date

The Galaxy Ring, Samsung’s surprise announcement at Samsung Unpacked in January, will be unveiled fully at Samsung Unpacked in July.
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When Will The Galaxy Z Fold 6 Launch?

Even with the Z Fold 5 switching up things a bit before, the next Z Fold 6 is expected to be released in the same time of th year.
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Google is reportedly rebranding Bard to Gemini and plans to launch a dedicated app

According to a document leaked on X, Google is planning to introduce some major changes to its Bard AI tool as soon as this coming week. The plans, which have not been publicly confirmed, reportedly include changing the Bard name to Gemini. It would make sense for Google to do so, if only for simplicity’s sake — the company introduced its new multimodal AI model, Gemini, at the end of 2023 and has begun integrating it into some of its products, including Bard.

The changelog shared by Android app developer Dylan Roussel is dated February 7, and also notes that the paid Gemini Advanced tier will become available at this time. It mentions a Gemini app for Android is “coming soon,” as well.

Per the document, Gemini Advanced will give users access to the Ultra 1.0 model of Gemini, which is “far more capable at highly complex tasks like coding, logical reasoning, following nuanced instructions, and creative collaboration.” It’ll be available in over 150 countries and optimized for the English language at the start. The changelog also says Gemini will expand to Canada with this release.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-is-reportedly-rebranding-bard-to-gemini-and-plans-to-launch-a-dedicated-app-204442265.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

OnePlus 12R Confirmed To Launch With Biggest Ever Battery

OnePlus has confirmed that the OP12R will feature the largest ever battery seen on a OnePlus handset, plus the use of a cutting-edge LTPO 4.0 display
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Save The Date: Asus ROG Phone 8 to launch January 8th

Asus has confirmed that it’s new ROG Phone 8 Series will be unveiled on January 8th, 2024. Sporting improved cameras, better protection, an ultra-bright display, and increased cooling, the ROG Phone 8 could be rather special.
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OnePlus 12 and 12R to launch globally on January 23

Celebrating its tenth year of making smartphones, OnePlus has today confirmed the global launch date of its latest…
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Nothing To See as Phone 2a Could Launch During MWC 2024

With two phones under its belt, the Phone 1 and Phone 2, Nothing is rumored to be developing…
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ESPN Bet online sportsbook to launch Nov. 14 in 17 states

ESPN Bet — a rebrand of the PENN Entertainment sportsbook — will launch in 17 states on November 14.
Digital Trends

Apple’s October Mac launch event was shot on … an iPhone?!

Apple goes over the top with its launch events, and its latest was up to par. It’s even crazier, then, that the entire thing was shot on an iPhone 15.
Digital Trends

Details of the OnePlus Open will unfold during October 19 launch event in Mumbai

As previous rumors predicted, the OnePlus Open will make its global debut on October 19th at a launch event being held in Mumbai, India. Also as predicted, the OnePlus Open and Oppo Find N3 will be two takes of the same hardware, with OxygenOS present on the former and ColorOS on the latter. This means […]

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Specs and case renders leak for Tecno’s Phantom V Flip foldable ahead of September 22 launch

Tecno made headlines during MWC 2023 when it unveiled what was the cheapest Galaxy Fold alternative called the Phantom V Fold 5G with a $ 1,220 price tag, and it’s now getting ready to launch a Galaxy Flip rival. Dubbed the Phantom V Flip, details about the clamshell foldable have naturally leaked a few days before […]

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Starfield will add DLSS and other PC features missing at launch

Bethesda has updated Starfield with bug fixes while promising new features are on the way. The developer says features in the pipeline include native DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) support, an HDR calibration menu, a field of view slider and more.

Today’s update to version 1.7.29 is limited to stability fixes. Bethesda says it specifically targets Xbox Series X/S glitches and adds various performance improvements to reduce crashes and improve frame rates. In addition, it fixed several issues that could prevent players from finishing three quests (“All That Money Can Buy,” “Into the Unknown” and “Shadows in Neon”). “Our priority initially is making sure any top blocker bugs or stability issues are addressed and adding quality-of-life features that many are asking for,” the developer wrote in the update’s notes.

But the future Starfield additions Bethesda teased today are more likely to catch players’ attention. DLSS support on PCs will be a welcome addition, as the technology could boost resolution and improve stability for people with NVIDIA cards. (AMD’s gaming boss Frank Azor had already suggested last month that nothing is contractually stopping the developer from adding NVIDIA’s rival upscaling tool.) Various community mods can already implement unofficial DLSS support, but gamers will be pleased to know official support is coming.

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Bethesda says other features in development include brightness and contrast controls, an HDR calibration menu, a FOV slider and 32:9 ultra-wide monitor support for more immersive exploration. It even says it’s working on an eat button for in-game meals, and it may add better maps. Finally, Bethesda says it’s working on adding built-in cross-platform mod support for early 2024.

The developer stresses that it’s “working closely with” NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel on driver support and that future Starfield updates will all include stability improvements for individual hardware. That statement could be viewed as a response to a recent technical report from Digital Foundry saying the game had “disproportionately poor NVIDIA and Intel performance.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/starfield-will-add-dlss-and-other-pc-features-missing-at-launch-191530723.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Uber could launch a service similar to TaskRabbit

In the future, when you need someone’s help to get a task done, you might find yourself launching the Uber app on your phone. According to Bloomberg, the company is exploring the possibility of offering a new TaskRabbit-like service. Developer Steve Moser found code hidden within Uber’s iPhone app for an offering that’s reportedly codenamed “Chore.” Based on its current iteration, Chore will let you hire “taskers” and will let you specify in the app what you need help with, how long you think it would take and what time you want the tasker to arrive. 

Of course, you’ll be able to input the address of where you want the person to go before you submit your request. Uber will then compute a payment that’s commensurate with the time required to finish the task, but you will have to pay for a minimum of one hour no matter what it is. Bloomberg says the code Moser unearthed didn’t have hints on what types of help you can ask from providers, but the potential service’s rival TaskRabbit has a wide range of categories to choose from. These include cleaning, furniture assembly, electrical help, plumbing, TV mounting, packing and moving, snow removal, computer assistance, pet sitting and even senior care. 

Like any other unconfirmed feature still in development, though, Chore may not even make it to public release. If it does, it’ll be a huge new undertaking for Uber, which is known for its ride-hailing and restaurant delivery services. Over the past months, Uber rolled out Carshare, which lets users borrow cars from private owner, to more locations as part of its efforts to become a zero-emission platform by 2040. It also started testing a toll-free number — 1-833-USE-UBER (1-833-873-8237) — that you can call to schedule an immediate or a future ride.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/uber-could-launch-a-service-similar-to-taskrabbit-133017852.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Google gives the Android branding a smart 3D refresh ahead of the Pixel 8 launch

OnePlus will launch the Android 14-based OxygenOS 14 on September 25th

As Samsung rolls out the second One UI 6 beta, OnePlus has announced that it will launch the next version of its OxygenOS smartphone software on September 25th. Named OxygenOS 14, it’s based on Android 14 and is powered by the brand’s proprietary ‘Trinity Engine’ platform. This is what OnePlus has to say about the […]

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Google’s Pixel 8 series will launch on October 4th

If you were wondering when Google would take the wraps off its Pixel 8 series of smartphoens you’ll be happy to learn that a launch date has been announced. Thanks to Google sending launch invites out we now know that October 4th is when MadeByGoogle will unveil its new Pixel 8 and 8 Pro, and […]

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The OnePlus foldable will reportedly launch before the end of August

After yesterday’s leaked renders of the OnePlus 12 we have a report concerning the launch date of the brands’ first foldable which may or may not be called the OnePlus Open or V Fold. The report claims that the OnePlus foldable could launch as soon as next month – specifically on August 29th. The report […]

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Honor teases upcoming Magic V2 flagship foldable – sets July 12 launch date

Having unveiled the Magic Vs during MWC 2023 in Barcelona, Honor is gearing up to take the wraps off of its fully-fledged successor – the Magic V2. Unlike the Vs which was basically an update of Honor’s first foldable, the Magic V2 promises to be a proper successor with new hardware and software features. In […]

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Meta’s Twitter rival Threads won’t initially launch in the EU

Meta’s rival to Twitter called Threads, an Instagram app is set to launch tomorrow in the US and UK, but it may not come to the rest of Europe anytime soon. A Meta spokesperson told Ireland’s Data Protection Commission that the service will not be rolled out in the EU “at this point,” Independent.ie has reported. 

Threads may not be launching in much of Europe due to more stringent data privacy requirements. The DPC is apparently not blocking the service — instead, it’s Meta that has “not yet prepared the service for a European launch outside the UK, which is not fully governed by GDPR or EU privacy rules,” according to the report.

The EU just hit Meta with a ruling that it must obtain consent from users before delivering personalized ads in the region. Prior to that, the company was hit with a €390 million EU fine (about $ 425 million) for not receiving consent before serving up such ads. 

On top of that, in 2021, the DPC fined WhatsApp €225 million ($ 266.8 million at the time) or not providing enough detail on how it shares EU users’ data with Facebook. That could pose a problem for Threads in its current state, as it automatically imports data from Instagram, including advertising and behavior information, according to the policy listed on its iOS App Store page

Threads is arriving amidst issues with Twitter like “rate limits” on tweets and degraded service for the power-user app Tweetdeck. Many of Twitter’s active users have been seeking an alternative with apps like Bluesky and Mastodon, but some see Threads as the most viable option due to Meta’s scale. That’s despite any reservations they may have about CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook’s track record on privacy and other issues.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-twitter-rival-threads-wont-initially-launch-in-the-eu-090314803.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Nubia’s RedMagic 8S Pro will launch on July 5th – could be the first phone with 24GB of RAM

Nubia are no strangers to packing their gaming smartphones with all the power you might desire and the upcoming RedMagic 8S Pro would appear to hold true to that tradition. Confirmed to launch on July 5th, the RedMagic 8S Pro could be the first phone to launch with a massive 24GB of RAM under the […]

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The Nothing Phone 2 gets a July 11 launch date

Discontent with its brand having been out of the limelight for a few days, Nothing has today announced that it will unveil its successor to the Phone (1) on July 11th. Dubbed the Phone (2), the phone is already known to be powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, have a bigger battery, and […]

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Asus confirms Zenfone 10 launch date, teases compact design

Following on from its well-received Zenfone 9, Asus has confirmed the date on which it will announce the Zenfone 10 and also teased an image of the phone’s front design. The announcement was light on hardware specifics but seeing as Asus is using the ‘Compact’ branding on its website we can assume that the Zenfone […]

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It’s official – Samsung will launch the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 in late July

Every year Samsung picks a slightly earlier date on which to launch its foldable devices and 2023 is no different with the brand announcing that July 27 will be the big day. And, for the first time, the Galaxy Unpacked event will be held in Seoul, South Korea. The venue is COEX in Samseong-dong, Gangnam, […]

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The Nothing Phone 2 will launch in July with a bigger battery

We already knew that Nothing is gearing up to launch its second smartphone sometime during the summer and thanks to a Forbes interview with Carl Pei, we now know that it will be as soon as July. In the interview, Nothing’s CEO talks about the design, the Phone 2’s battery capacity, and claims that the […]

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Meta is gearing up to launch a Twitter-like platform bolted on to the Instagram app

There’s no denying that the Twitter-verse isn’t what it used to be, thanks at least in part to the blue Twitter Blue program being abused by randoms and malcontents alike. While there are alternatives such as Mastodon around, they aren’t gathering the type of momentum that might worry Twitter thanks to the complexity of the […]

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Motorola confirms Razr 40 Ultra will launch on June 1st

After all the leaks and rumors of the past month or so, Motorola has taken it upon itself to confirm that its new Razr 40 range of foldable smartphones will be unveiled on June 1. It’s believed that Motorola will announce a pair of foldable phones at the launch event which will apparently “Flip the […]

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Meta’s rumored Twitter competitor could launch as early as next month

Folks are spending less time on Twitter since Elon Musk bought the social media site last year, but there’s still plenty of demand for similar platforms like Mastodon and Bluesky. To that point, Meta has long been rumored to be building its own platform to rival Twitter. After months of speculation, there’s finally some details to go along with the rumors, according to digital media marketing expert Lia Haberman.

Haberman says the app is nearing completion and could launch as early as the end of June. She says that Meta has been meeting with select content creators to discuss the platform. One of these creators furnished Haberman with all kinds of info about the forthcoming app, calling it “Instagram for your thoughts.”

Instagram is the right word here, as it looks like the entire platform is built out of the popular photo-sharing social network. The decentralized app is said to work with current Instagram parameters, like usernames and passwords. So if you already have an Instagram account you should be able to sign right up and automatically sync up with your current followers. Your handle, bio and verification should all carry over from IG. Haberman says that even blocked Instagram accounts and hidden words transfer to the new platform.

This is also set to be a decentralized app that’ll integrate with other platforms like Mastodon, meaning you should be able to interact with users across multiple services without having to constantly switch between apps. The report indicates that text updates will be limited to 500 characters, which is less than an Instagram caption, but still plenty long enough to make a sarcastic comment or whatever. 

You’ll likely be able to attach links, photos and videos up to five minutes long, which of course is much shorter than Twitter's recently launched two hour video-sharing feature. Just like Twitter and similar platforms, Meta’s service will have its own versions of likes, replies and reposts. Haberman got her hands on a leaked marketing slide that shows the app in action and, well, it looks a whole lot like Twitter, Bluesky and the rest, with a dash of Instagram's design scheme. 

Back in March when these rumors first surfaced, Meta said it was indeed “exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates.” So this is coming, it’s just a matter of what it’ll look like and if it’ll be “the one” to dethrone Twitter. There's no name for the service yet, though within Meta it has a few codenames like Barcelona and P92. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/metas-rumored-twitter-competitor-could-launch-as-early-as-next-month-181625616.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Google Pixel Watch 2 may launch a lot sooner than we thought

Alongside the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, rumor has it that Google will also launch the Pixel Watch 2 later this fall.
Digital Trends

Blizzard will let you try ‘Diablo IV’ once more ahead of its June launch

Blizzard is giving gamers another chance to try Diablo IV before its official arrival. The game’s Server Slam will give console and PC players 48 hours to explore the prologue and Act I as the publisher prepares its infrastructure for the dungeon crawler’s highly anticipated June 6th launch.

The Server Slam will take place from May 12th at 12 PM to May 14th at 12 PM PDT. It will be open to players on Windows PC, PS5 / 4, Xbox Series X / S or Xbox One. The event will support couch co-op, cross-play and cross-progression, and you can play as all five character classes, including Barbarian, Druid, Sorcerer, Rogue and Necromancer.

The two-day event will limit character progression to Level 20, after which you’ll no longer receive Ability Points (but you can still earn new gear). In addition, if you played during the game’s Early Access or Open Beta periods, your progress won’t carry over to Server Slam — nor will progress from the Server Slam transfer to the game’s launch.

Blizzard is giving Server Slam participants a challenging boss fight in Ashava, described as “one of the Burning Hells’ most fowl machinations.” The monster with “two razor-sharp arm blades, scales stronger than plate mail, and hell-bent on ripping through all who interrupt her quest to bathe Sanctuary in poisonous bile” should present a formidable challenge for Level 20 and under players. However, anyone taking her down will seize the Cry of Ashava Mount Trophy, which will roll over to the final launch. Additionally, you’ll get another chance to earn the trophies from the first two beta weekends, including the Initial Casualty Title (reach Kyovashad with one character), the Early Voyager Title and Beta Wolf Pack Cosmetic Item (both requiring reaching Level 20 on one character).

Blizzard is opening pre-downloads for Server Slam two days before the event, on May 10th at 12 PM PDT. You can read the full installation instructions here, and if you participated in the earlier betas (and didn’t uninstall it), you’ll see an update for Server Slam available to download.

Engadget’s Igor Bonifacic tried Diablo IV during a December preview and the more recent betas and was left cautiously optimistic. It revealed impressive attention to story and gameplay detail as the upcoming title slows its pace while still adhering to the franchise’s familiar roots. However, we’ll have to wait and see if Blizzard can “stick the landing,” given the publisher’s hit-or-miss record in recent years — and memories of the fiasco that was Diablo III’s 2012 launch.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/blizzard-will-let-you-try-diablo-iv-once-more-ahead-of-its-june-launch-211509415.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

The Pixel Fold is set to launch in May … with a bad surprise

Google’s upcoming I/O developers will likely witness the launch of its first foldable, but it appears that the Pixel Fold won’t exactly be easy on the wallet.
Digital Trends

‘Horizon Burning Shores’ launch trailer teases the franchise’s biggest boss fight

Ahead of its April 19th release date, Sony and Guerrilla Games on Friday shared a new trailer for Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores. The DLC is set to tell the next chapter of Aloy’s story. The trailer offers a fresh look at the Burning Shores, a volcanic archipelago that was once home to Los Angeles. We also get a closer look at the Metal Devil boss fight that was teased at the end of the announcement trailer Sony and Guerrilla released last year.

That battle is one of the reasons Horizon Forbidden West:Burning Shores won’t be available on PlayStation 4, even though you can play the original game on Sony’s last generation console. “The cityscape ruins of LA and its surroundings are highly detailed and require a lot of processing power as well as fast streaming technology to run properly,” Horizon Forbidden West Game Director Mathijs de Jonge told the PlayStation Blog last month. He went on to add there’s “a particular battle scene that requires a LOT of memory and processing power.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/horizon-burning-shores-launch-trailer-teases-the-franchises-biggest-boss-fight-192153867.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Meta reportedly plans to launch its first true AR glasses in 2027

Meta has shared its latest augmented and virtual reality hardware roadmap with employees, and according to The Verge, it's planning to launch its first full-fledged AR glasses in 2027. While the company intends to release other AR glasses before then, the device it's launching in four years' time is the same one Mark Zuckerberg believes could become Meta's "iPhone moment." That is, he thinks it could shake up the industry and could become as popular as the iPhone. 

The glasses will reportedly have the capability to project avatars as high-quality holograms superimposed on top of the real world — they're also expected to be quite expensive. Employees will get the chance to take first crack at testing the device in 2024 before it makes its way to the public as Meta's "Innovation" line of advanced smart glasses for the earliest adopters. 

The company also discussed the other AR and VR devices it's launching before its full-fledged AR glasses are ready, The Verge says. This fall, it's apparently releasing a follow-up to Ray-Ban Stories, which it developed in partnership with Luxottica. The Quest 3 headset, which is expected to be twice as thin and as powerful as the Quest 2, will also be available later this year. In 2024, Meta also plans to launch a VR headset codenamed "Ventura," which it intends to sell "at the most attractive price point in the VR consumer market." 

A year after that, in 2025, Meta plans to launch the third-generation Ray-Ban Stories. It will feature a display called the "viewfinder" designed to view incoming texts, scan QR codes and translate messages to other languages in real time. Users will reportedly be able to control the glasses with hand movements and will eventually be able to type messages using a virtual keyboard. In addition, Meta is developing a smartwatch to go with these particular glasses.

Meta isn't the only big technology company with plans to launch AR and VR glasses and headsets over the next few years. Apple is believed to be debuting its long-awaited mixed reality headset at WWDC in June. It's expected to have advanced features, such as dual 4K displays and controller-free input, and to cost as much as $ 3,000. However, reports suggest that Apple is working on a cheaper version that more people will be able to afford.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-first-true-ar-glasses-2027-060946419.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

The Motorola Razr 2023 will launch in Q2 with the biggest cover screen on a clamshell yet

It’s not long since Oppo wowed us with its new Find N2 Flip which packs in a larger and more useful cover screen than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 and now we have news that Motorola is going even bigger. As revealed by leaker of note, Evan Blass, the Motorola Razr 2023 sports a display […]

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How and when to watch the Honor Magic 5 Pro and Magic Vs launch event at MWC 2023

Like it or not, MWC 2023 is looming big on the horizon and this year Honor is launching its follow-up to the excellent Magic 4 Pro which is naturally called the Magic 5 Pro and packs in the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset. While that’s already something to look forward to, we are more […]

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The Xiaomi 13 flagship series launch globally on February 26 at MWC 2023

Q1 is a time for flagship smartphones to be announced and today brings news that the Xiaomi 13 series, already unveiled in China, will have its global launch at MWC 2023 on February 26. Consisting of the 13 and 13 Pro, the new range of flagship phones will offer a viable alternative to Samsung’s Galaxy […]

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Nothing will launch a “More Premium” Phone (2) in the US in late 2023

For those who aren’t keen on signing up for Nothing’s Phone 1 beta program there is some good news on the horizon with Carl Pei conforming that its successor will launch in the US towards the end of 2023. The Phone (2) as it will be called will offer a “more premium” experience than the […]

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This is what the Galaxy S23 series looks like and when it might launch

The next big thing to come from Samsung is the Galaxy S23 series which will launch in early 2023 and in the US at least, be powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. As you might expect, the leaks have started in earnest, the latest of which reveals the design of the Galaxy […]

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The Nothing Phone 1’s Android 13 beta program is live with a limited US launch on the cards

Omitted from its initial launch earlier this year, the US could finally gain limited access to Nothing’s Phone 1 as part of a ‘testing program’ for its Android 13 software – Nothing OS 1.5 Beta. The Nothing OS 1.5 Beta is already live for those with Phone 1 handsets, and we’ve got the changelog for […]

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OnePlus commits to 4 major Android updates and reveals OxygenOS 13.1 will launch by mid-2023

OnePlus announced today that it will now match Samsung’s commitment to software and security updates for its handsets, which means that the brand will supply 4 major Android OS updates and five years’ worth of security patches. The press release also details when we can expect OxygenOS 13.1 to begin rolling out and some of […]

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Watch NASA’s latest Artemis 1 launch attempt here at 1:04AM ET

NASA is once again preparing to launch Artemis 1 after technical issues and hurricanes upended previous attempts. The next launch window for the uncrewed test flight around the Moon will be open for two hours, starting at 1:04AM ET on November 16th. In case NASA has to scrub it once again, the agency has scheduled another backup launch window, which opens at 1:45AM on November 19th.

The agency had penciled in a launch attempt for November 14th, but Hurricane Nicole forced a slight delay to those plans. NASA kept the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft on the launch pad as the hurricane battered the Kennedy Space Center. They sustained minor damage, but not enough to force a lengthier delay.

NASA first tried to send Artemis 1 into space on August 29th, but engine issues and a hydrogen fuel leak forced the agency to scrub the initial launch attempts. The next stab at a launch in late September didn’t work out either. NASA took the SLS and Orion back to the Vehicle Assembly Building to protect them from Hurricane Ian. Here’s hoping NASA can finally send them on their way this time.

You can watch a livestream of the latest launch attempt below. Alternatively, you can watch the launch in virtual reality. If you happen to be in Florida or the south east region of Georgia, you may be able to see the SLS and Orion soar into the skies by going outside, if conditions are favorable enough.

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

‘Death Stranding’ has been played by 10 million people since launch

For a project that was divisive among critics and players alike, Death Stranding has done pretty well for itself. With the game celebrating its third anniversary today, Kojima Productions revealed that more than 10 million people have played the studio’s first game. The milestone takes into account all the platforms where Death Stranding is available, including PC Game Pass. “It makes me happy to think that there are over 10 million “Sam one” players around the world, all loosely connected,” creator Hideo Kojima said on Twitter.

It might seem obvious that a game from the creator of Metal Gear Solid would find commercial success, but it didn’t always look that way. By some accounts, Death Stranding was a flop when it first came out. According to one ResetEra post from 2020, Sony was reportedly unhappy with the game’s sales, with the author of the post claiming 3 million copies of Death Stranding were sitting in warehouses as of March of that year. But then the critical reevaluation of the game began, helped first by the pandemic and then its arrival on PC. In Death Stranding, a lot of people found an experience that helped them make sense of a world that had changed overnight and by July 2021, the game had sold 5 million copies.

As for Death Stranding’s future, actor Norman Reedus recently said in an interview that Kojima Productions is working on a sequel. In the past weeks, the studio has also begun teasing a game that will star actors Elle Fanning and Shioli Kutsuna.

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Latest Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro leaks give cause for optimism ahead of October 6 launch event

A little over a week before the official unveiling of the Pixel 7 series on October 6th, leaks have shed further light on the device and help to confirm a previous rumor about its pricing in the US. The first leak comes via a premature Amazon listing which appears to confirm the $ 599 pricing of […]

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Vivo’s X90 Pro+ will reportedly launch in December with a 1-inch main sensor and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor

December could see the launch of a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-powered flagship from Vivo which is called the X90 Pro+ which is rumored to sport a 1-inch camera sensor, LPDDR5X memory, and also UFS 4.0 storage. On paper, it would appear to be a powerhouse that could rival Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S23 flagship series. We’ve […]

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The OnePlus 11 Pro will reportedly launch before the end of 2022 with the alert slider making a welcome return

So, we already know that Qualcomm is holding its annual summit around a month earlier than usual where we will see the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 officially unveiled. This brings us neatly to a new report that claims the OnePlus 11 Pro will be announced before the end of 2022, complete with the aforementioned chip […]

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A cheaper Chromecast with Google TV will reportedly launch ‘imminently’

It’s been a topic of the rumor mill for a while but it seems that a new version of the Chromecast with Google TV media streamer is being prepped for launch ‘imminently’. Rather than sporting updated internals with more features and the much requested boost in storage, it seems that the search giant is rather […]

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SLS fuel leak likely to delay Artemis 1 launch to October

NASA’s next-generation Space Launch System likely won’t fly in September. After a fuel leak forced the agency to scrub its second attempt to launch Artemis 1, there had been some hope the mission could get underway before its current launch window ended on September 6th. That won’t be the case.

"We will not be launching in this launch period," Jim Free, NASA's associate administrator for exploration systems development, told a room full of journalists after the events of Saturday morning. “This was not a manageable leak,” Artemis Mission Manager Michael Sarafin added, referring to the “quick disconnect” fitting that gave NASA so much trouble yesterday. Ground crew at Kennedy Space Center attempted to troubleshoot the issue three times before recommending a “no go” for Saturday’s launch.

According to Sarafin, the leak began after one of the fuel lines to Artemis 1’s core booster went through a brief and “inadvertent” overpressurization. An “errant” manual command from Mission Control triggered the incident. As of Saturday, Sarafin said it was too early to know if that was the cause of the fuel leak, but there was enough flammable hydrogen gas near the rocket that it would not have been safe to launch. "We want to be deliberate and careful about drawing conclusions here, because correlation does not equal causation," he added.

Whatever caused the leak, NASA now needs to replace the non-metallic gasket that was supposed to prevent hydrogen from escaping at the quick disconnect. The agency has two options as to how to proceed. It could either replace the gasket at Launch Pad 39B or the KSC’s Vehicle Assembly Building. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

Doing the work on the pad would allow NASA to test the system at cryogenic temperatures. That would give the agency a better idea of how the rocket will behave once it’s ready to launch again. However, NASA would need to build an enclosure around the SLS. At the VAB, meanwhile, the building would act as the enclosure but would limit testing to ambient temperatures only.

In the end, the SLS will likely end up at the VAB no matter what since NASA needs to test the batteries in the vehicle’s flight termination system every 20 days. The system allows the Space Force to destroy the rocket if it flies off course or something else goes awry during flight. NASA can only conduct that testing in the VAB, and the Space Force recently gave the agency a five-day extension on the usual deadline.

All told, Artemis 1’s next earliest launch window opens on September 16th and then closes on October 4th. That opening includes a potential conflict with another mission. Space X’s Crew-5 flight is scheduled to lift off on October 3rd from Kennedy Space Center. Therefore, NASA is more likely to aim for the subsequent window that opens on October 17th and runs until the end of the month. We’ll know more next week when NASA holds another press conference, but NASA Administrator Bill Nelson was adamant the agency wouldn’t attempt to launch Artemis 1 until it feels the SLS is ready to fly. “We do not launch until we think it’s right,” he said. "I look at this as part of our space program, of which safety is at the top of our list.”

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Motorola confirms August 11 launch date for its Razr 2022 and X30 Pro flagships

Originally slated for launch last week, Motorola has instead confirmed that the Razr 2022 and X30 Pro flagships will instead be announced on August 11th, a day after Samsung’s Unpacked event. While Motorola hasn’t given a reason for the delay in launching the Razr 2022 and X30 Pro, we do have a good idea of […]

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Faraday Future delays the launch of its first electric vehicle yet again

Back in February, Faraday Future presented the production version of its FF91 electric SUV at its California plant and said it would start manufacturing its long-delayed vehicle in the third quarter of 2022. Now, according to Bloomberg, the embattled company has revealed in a filing for investors that it has to push back the EV's production yet again and that it needs more cash for its commercial launch. 

Apparently, the company said it has to delay FF91's deliveries to the "third or fourth quarter of 2022." Seeing as the third quarter has already started, it's now likely aiming for late Q3 — that said, the fourth quarter seems more likely, and that is if Faraday Future's plans finally go as intended. Especially since it also has to find the money needed to keep running: The company also told investors that it needs additional cash to launch the FF91 and that it's looking to raise around $ 325 million to fund its operations until December 31st, 2022. 

Faraday Future was founded in 2014 and planned to launch its first electric vehicle way back in 2018. It's had to postpone launching its EV several times over the past years as it grappled with a litany of financial issues. The company almost ran out of cash in 2017 until a company called Season Smart, which was later acquired by Chinese company Evergrande, agreed to invest $ 2 billion in it. Faraday Future quickly burned through Season Smart's $ 800 million initial cash injection, though, and it spent 2018 feuding with its main investor. 

While it reached a restructuring deal with Evergrande by the end of 2018, it wasn't able to secure enough money to bring back the employees it put on unpaid leave. The company also had to give up on its plans to build a factory in Las Vegas and put up the 900-acre plot for sale for $ 40 million. Faraday went public in a merger with a blank-check company back in 2021, but it looks like that wasn't enough to solve its financial woes.

As Bloomberg notes, the delay comes in the midst of an issue between the company and its founder, Jia Yueting, who stepped down as CEO in 2019 as part of the company' restructuring deal. Apparently, a shareholder group associated with Yueting offering Faraday Future "at least $ 100 million" to remove an unnamed director from the startup's board. The company reportedly pushed back, and the group accused it of not treating the offer "with the gravity, urgency and fairness it deserves" considering Faraday's financial condition. 

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics