New Fitbit devices will need to be linked to a Google account next year

Starting next year, you’ll only be able to activate newly released Fitbit models using a Google account. It doesn’t come as a surprise for Google’s services to become more intertwined with Fitbit’s fitness devices after the tech giant acquired the latter for $2.1 billion in 2021. But now, we have a timeline for when Fitbit accounts will no longer be essential. As spotted by 9to5Google, Fitbit has revealed in its help page that it will launch support for Google accounts in 2023. Signing up for Fitbit and activating new devices will require the use of a Google account after that.

In addition, the brand will completely end support for Fitbit accounts sometime in early 2025, after which a Google account will be required to use its fitness devices and smartwatches. Fitbit promises that it will be transparent and will notify you of the exact date through notifications in its app, by email and in help articles. To ensure a smooth transition, it will enable the option to move your current Fitbit device to a Google account as soon as support arrives next year. You’ll also have the opportunity to make changes to your Fitbit data when making the move. If you do link a device to a Google account, you’ll be able to manage your Fitbit data both from the brand’s app and from your Google settings. 

Fitbit says its parent company made binding commitments not to use your health and wellness data for ads and will keep that information separate from what it does send to advertisers. The tech giant had insisted from the time it announced the acquisition that it will not be using Fitbit data for ad targeting. In 2020, it formally made the commitment to the European Commission to ward off an antitrust probe. 

Apple updates iOS 16 to fix shaky iPhone 14 Pro camera and copy-paste issues

Apple released its latest iPhone lineup and mobile platforms earlier this month, and a couple of annoying bugs quickly made themselves known to users. The good news is that the tech giant has quickly whipped up patches to fix the issues and has now released them as part of the iOS 16.0.2 update. One of the problems the update solves is the iPhone 14 Pro’s compatibility troubles with third-party apps that use its camera, such as Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat. 

Users found that when they fire up those apps and use the device’s rear cam, the camera view shakes on screen and the phone emanates grinding and rattling noises. In its patch notes, Apple said the update fixes an issue wherein the “[c]amera may vibrate and cause blurry photos when shooting with some third-party apps on iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.” The company didn’t elaborate on the cause behind it, but it’s possible that the apps weren’t meshing well with the device’s optical image stabilization system, causing the rattling noises. 

Another troublesome problem the update fixes is the persistent appearance of permission prompts when trying to copy and paste content between apps. Apple senior manager Ron Huang previously admitted that it was “absolutely not expected behavior” and said the company was dealing with it. iOS 16.0.2 will get rid of other bugs, as well, including one that causes the device’s display to go black during setup and another that renders the touch input on some iPhone X, iPhone XR and iPhone 11 displays to be unresponsive after they’re serviced. 

Meta sued for allegedly dodging Apple’s privacy rules

Felix Krause’s discovery that Meta’s Facebook and Instagram apps can track iPhone owners across websites hasn’t sat well with some people. Bloombergreports users have filed two proposed class action lawsuits accusing Meta of evading Apple’s privacy-oriented App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature and consequently violating both federal and state laws barring unauthorized data gathering. Meta supposedly created a workaround by injecting tracking code into websites when you use its in-app browser, letting it monitor activity regardless of whether or not you gave permission to the app.

Apple introduced App Tracking Transparency as part of the iOS 14.5 update released in April 2021. The technology lets you ask apps not to track you, and requires that you explicitly opt in. Meta has been vocal in its opposition. It encouraged users to allow tracking, and warned that ATT might cost it $10 billion in ad revenue this year.

Meta rejected the allegations in a statement to Engadget. The company said both lawsuits were “without merit,” and that it would defend itself “vigorously.” It further claimed its in-app browsers honor privacy decisions, including for ads.

The lawsuits aren’t certain to obtain class action status, which could lead to compensation for many users. Whether or not the suits are successful, they illustrate the tension between Meta, Apple and privacy advocates — Meta is determined to preserve the targeted advertising that fuels its business, even as critics and rival companies raise more objections.

Meta ordered to pay $175 million in patent infringement case

Meta is facing a hefty bill after losing a patent infringement lawsuit. A federal judge in Texas has ordered the company to pay Voxer, the developer of app called Walkie Talkie, nearly $175 million as an ongoing royalty. Voxer accused Meta of infringing its patents and incorporating that tech in Instagram Live and Facebook Live.

In 2006, Tom Katis, the founder of Voxer, started working on a way to resolve communications problems he faced while serving in the US Army in Afghanistan, as TechCrunch notes. Katis and his team developed tech that allows for live voice and video transmissions, which led to Voxer debuting the Walkie Talkie app in 2011.

According to the lawsuit, soon after Voxer released the app, Meta (then known as Facebook) approached the company about a collaboration. Voxer is said to have revealed its proprietary technology as well as its patent portfolio to Meta, but the two sides didn’t reach an agreement. Voxer claims that even though Meta didn’t have live video or voice services back then, it identified the Walkie Talkie developer as a competitor and shut down access to Facebook features such as the “Find Friends” tool.

Meta debuted Facebook Live in 2015. Katis claims to have had a chance meeting with a Facebook Live product manager in early 2016 to discuss the alleged infringements of Voxer’s patents in that product, but Meta declined to reach a deal with the company. The latter released Instagram Live later that year. “Both products incorporate Voxer’s technologies and infringe its patents,” Voxer claimed in the lawsuit.

Meta denied Voxer’s claims in a statement to TechCrunch. It plans to fight the ruling. “We believe the evidence at trial demonstrated that Meta did not infringe Voxer’s patents,” a spokesperson said. “We intend to seek further relief, including filing an appeal.”

SpaceX wants to put Starlink internet on rural school buses

Starlink satellite internet access has already spread to boats and RVs, and now it might accompany your child on the way home from class. SpaceX told the FCC in a filing that it’s piloting Starlink aboard school buses in the rural US. The project would keep students connected during lengthy rides (over an hour in the pilot), ensuring they can complete internet-related homework in a timely fashion even if broadband is slow or non-existent at home.

The spaceflight company simultaneously backed FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel’s May proposal to bring WiFi to school buses, and said it supported the regulator’s efforts to fund school and library internet access through the E-Rate program. To no one’s surprise, SpaceX felt it had the best solution thanks to rapid satellite deployment, portable dishes and fast service for the “most remote” areas.

We’ve asked the FCC and SpaceX for comment, and will let you know if they respond. The pitch comes just two months after the FCC cleared the use of Starlink in vehicles, noting that it would serve the “public interest” to keep people online while on the move. The concept isn’t new — Google outfitted school buses with WiFi in 2018 following tests, for example.

There’s no guarantee the FCC will embrace SpaceX and fund bus-based Starlink service. The Commission rejected SpaceX’s request for $885.5 million in help through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, and the firm responded by blasting the rejection as “grossly unfair” and allegedly unsupported by evidence. Satellite internet service theoretically offers more consistent rural coverage than cellular data, though, and Starlink competitors like Amazon’s Project Kuiper have yet to deploy in earnest.

Facebook violated Palestinians’ right to free expression, says report commissioned by Meta

Meta has finally released the findings of an outside report that examined how its content moderation policies affected Israelis and Palestinians amid an escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip last May. The report, from Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), found that Facebook and Instagram violated Palestinians’ right to free expression.

“Based on the data reviewed, examination of individual cases and related materials, and external stakeholder engagement, Meta’s actions in May 2021 appear to have had an adverse human rights impact on the rights of Palestinian users to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, political participation, and non-discrimination, and therefore on the ability of Palestinians to share information and insights about their experiences as they occurred,” BSR writes in its report.

The report also notes that “an examination of individual cases” showed that some Israeli accounts were also erroneously banned or restricted during this period. But the report’s authors highlight several systemic issues they say disproportionately affected Palestinians.

According to the report, “Arabic content had greater over-enforcement,” and “proactive detection rates of potentially violating Arabic content were significantly higher than proactive detection rates of potentially violating Hebrew content.” The report also notes that Meta had an internal tool for detecting “hostile speech” in Arabic, but not in Hebrew, and that Meta’s systems and moderators had lower accuracy when assessing Palestinian Arabic.

As a result, many users’ accounts were hit with “false strikes,” and wrongly had posts removed by Facebook and Instagram. “These strikes remain in place for those users that did not appeal erroneous content removals,” the report notes.

Meta had commissioned the report following a recommendation from the Oversight Board last fall. In a response to the report, Meta says it will update some of its policies, including several aspects of its Dangerous Individuals and Organizations (DOI) policy. The company says it’s “started a policy development process to review our definitions of praise, support and representation in our DOI Policy,” and that it’s “working on ways to make user experiences of our DOI strikes simpler and more transparent.”

Meta also notes it has “begun experimentation on building a dialect-specific Arabic classifier” for written content, and that it has changed its internal process for managing keywords and “block lists” that affect content removals.

Notably, Meta says it’s “assessing the feasibility” of a recommendation that it notify users when it places “feature limiting and search limiting” on users’ accounts after they receive a strike. Instagram users have long complained that the app shadowbans or reduces the visibility of their account when they post about certain topics. These complaints increased last spring when users reported that they were barred from posting about Palestine, or that the reach of their posts was diminished. At the time, Meta blamed an unspecified “glitch.” BSR’s report notes that the company had also implemented emergency “break glass” measures that temporarily throttled all “repeatedly reshared content.”

Tesla to recall more than a million vehicles over pinchy windows

More than a million Tesla owners will have yet another recall notice to deal with in the coming weeks. On Tuesday the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration filed a safety recall notice for numerous late model vehicles from across the EV maker’s lineup because “the window automatic reversal system may not react correctly after detecting an obstruction,” and as such, “a closing window may exert excessive force by pinching a driver or passenger before retracting, increasing the risk of injury,” per the notice.

The following models and years are impacted: 2017-22 Model 3s as well as 2020-21 Model Y, X and S vehicles. Tesla has until mid-November to contact affected owners and plans to push an OTA software update to correct the issue. 

Per the Associated Press, Tesla first identified the issues during product testing in August and has incorporated the update into newly built vehicles since September 13th. However, multiple Twitter users have sounded off in response to Tuesday’s announcement, noting that their vehicles have been having nearly identical issues since at least 2021. 

This is far from Tesla’s first safety recall. Over the last two years alone, Teslas have been recalled on account of overheating infotainment systems, camera and trunk defects, separating front suspensions, their “full self driving” ADAS, their pedestrian warning sounds, their seatbelt chimes, software glitches in their brakes, and sundry touchscreen failures. And that’s just in the US. In Germany this past July, Tesla got popped trying to pass off painted-over frame damage on its Model 3s too.

Instagram app rendered unusable for some by instant crash bug

If you had been using Instagram’s Android app in the past hour or so, you might have noticed that an error had been causing it to crash seconds after launching, rendering it almost unusable. You weren’t alone: users from multiple regions flooded Twitter with complaints about this phenomenon. According to Downdetector, this bug first appeared around 12:44PM EDT today (September 23rd) — roughly matching the time when this author also started scratching head over the seemingly random crashes. At the time of writing this article, there were still fresh tweets grumbling about this issue.

A Meta representative confirmed to famed software engineer Jane Wong that the company is aware of the outage and it’s working to restore service “as quickly as possible.” While this bug appeared to be exclusive to Instagram’s Android app, Wong told Engadget that the iOS counterpart was also loading very slowly for her, indicating a backend issue.

At present, users who are able to open the app have noted limited functionality, including an inability to access Reels or DMs. We’ll be monitoring the situation as service gradually resumes, and will update if Meta provides additional details on what went wrong.

Update 9/22/22 2:29PM EDT: Meta says Instagram is back to normal as of 2:25PM EDT, though it stopped short at sharing what went wrong. We will share more if we hear back.

Nothing reveals the charging case for its next earbuds

Nothing is preparing to release its second set of true wireless earbuds and it’s given a first peek at what it has in store. The company started teasing the Ear Stick with images of the cylindrical charging case, which made an appearance on the runway at London Fashion Week.

Details are still scant, though the Ear Stick is an “entirely new product” with a fresh bud and case, Nothing told The Verge. Nothing also says the earbuds have a “feather-light” ergonomic design, which is “molded to your ears.” Leaked images of Nothing’s next earbuds indicated that they have a similar design to the company’s first attempt, Ear 1. As for the new charging case, Nothing said it was “inspired by classic cosmetic silhouettes” to build a product that can easily slip into users’ pockets.

The Ear Stick earbuds are slated to arrive later this year. Given its track record, expect Nothing to tediously drip feed more info about the product in the coming weeks.