Your Apple Card is now more of a full-fledged banking service. Apple has introduced a “high-yield” savings account from Goldman Sachs that will soon let you grow your funds. You can have your card’s Daily Cash automatically deposited if you like, but you can also transfer money from a linked bank account or your Apple Cash balance. You can withdraw at any time, and there are no fees, balance requirements or minimum deposit amounts.
The savings account will be available to Americans sometime in the “coming months,” Apple said. We’ve asked the company about the exact yield rate and will let you know if we hear back — needless to say, this could play a major role in your decision to sign up.
If this sounds somewhat familiar, it should. Goldman Sachs already offers a “Marcus” savings account that you can quickly open online and link to other banks. It’s built for mobile users with a dedicated app, touts a relatively high 2.15 percent annual yield and doesn’t carry any fees or minimum deposits. Apple’s offering mainly stands out through its daily reward deposits and, of course, tight integration with iPhones and other Apple products.
The Apple Card savings account isn’t quite the company’s answer to Google’s defunct Plex banking service, though. Where that was ultimately a bid to modernize banking for companies that didn’t have their own apps, Apple is providing a savings account dedicated to its cardholders. This is an incentive to use your card and stick to the Apple ecosystem.
Signal is removing the option to send and receive SMS messages in its Android app. Folks who currently use Signal as their default SMS app will receive alerts advising them to switch to a different one. You’ll be able to export your SMS messages and import them into another app (as long as the other one supports that option).
The change won’t happen overnight. “You will have several months to transition away from SMS in Signal, to export your SMS messages to another app, and to let the people you talk to know that they might want to switch to Signal or find another channel if not,” Signal wrote in a blog post.
Signal said it included SMS support in the first place to make it easier to use — you wouldn’t have to convince friends to start using Signal before exchanging messages with them from the app. While the move may be inconvenient for those who have been using Signal for the bulk of their messaging, the company spelled out some practical reasons for the change.
For one thing, SMS messages don’t have end-to-end encryption. Also, given the shifting prices of data and text plans over the years, it may actually be more expensive to send an SMS message than a Signal one these days. “We’ve heard repeatedly from people who’ve been hit with high messaging fees after assuming that the SMS messages they were sending were Signal messages, only to find out that they were using SMS, and being charged by their telecom provider,” Signal’s blog post reads. “This is a terrible experience with real consequences.”
The third reason Signal gave is that it wants to avoid folks getting confused between SMS and Signal messages in the app. It said that making these distinct has “serious UX and design implications.” Furthermore, Signal said dropping SMS support will free up resources to work on other projects and features.
It made the decision following a data breach at its verification partner Twillio. Signal said the incident exposed around 1,900 of its users’ phone numbers and SMS codes. It’s unclear whether the call to end SMS support is directly connected to the breach.
Sony has unveiled the ZV-1F, its third and most affordable vlogging camera, designed for creators as a “step up” from smartphones. Priced at just $500, it’s slotted below the $700 ZV-1 compact and $750 mirrorless ZV-E10 (with a kit lens), and has a Type-1 Exmor 20.1-megapixel sensor, 4K video, and features that help novice users get up to speed quickly.
While using a similar Type-1 sensor to the ZV-1, it trades that models 24-70mm zoom for a wide-angle, 20mm equivalent prime lens. That extra field of view, plus the fully-articulating display, could actually make it better for vlogging or selfies than the ZV-1 — allowing folks to better fit themselves into the frame.
Sony
However, it also makes it less versatile for shooting products, other people and so on, though you can do a digital zoom of 2x in 1080p and about 1.5x in 4K. It has no built-in stabilization, instead relying on electronic stabilization that imposes a 1.23x crop, making the 20mm lens about 25mm.
You can shoot 4K at up to 30 fps, the same as the ZV-1, and 1080p at up to an impressive 120fps (with 8-bit video in all modes). That’s done by the “slow and quick” setting, which also supports 60x hyperlapse capture in HD. However, unlike most other Sony models, the ZV-1F has contrast-detect only autofocus, rather than phase detect that’s generally faster and more accurate.
Sony
Like the other vlogging models, the ZV-1F has a “product showcase” feature that lets you place a product in front of the camera and quickly get focus. It also has the same bokeh switch that lets you defocus the background with the click of a button. A nod to TikTok or Snapchat creators is the Shot Mark feature that lets you grab a 15-, 30- or 60-second clip and send it to a smartphone through Sony’s app.
On the audio side, it has a directional microphone that offers good-quality sound, with forward bias that isolates your voice, even outdoors. It also includes a removable “deadcat” to reduce wind noise.
Other features include a single UHS-1 slot, an ISO range of 125 to 12,800, vertical shooting, and a front facing tally light that shows when you’re recording. Sony says it weighs just 256 grams, just a bit more than the 203 gram iPhone 14. It arrives on October 24th for $500.
TikTok may soon offer an easy way for you to buy a movie ticket after you see a trailer that catches your attention. It’s offering select movie studios access to a tool called Showtimes on TikTok. The studios will be able to show a full trailer, then display details on showtimes and nearby theaters. They’ll also be able to add a link to a partner site where you can buy tickets.
TikTok says 52 percent of users learn about a new show, movie or actor on the app, and a quarter of people who see an entertainment ad or trailer buy a ticket. This tool may streamline things and (from the studios’ perspective) help consumers follow through on their intent to buy a ticket.
The platform announced Showtimes on TikTok as part of a summit focused on brands and advertising. Another notable update is the fact that creators who are collaborating with mobile gaming companies will be able to include relevant iOS and Android app store links to help folks download the game they’re promoting. Creators will also be able to pin a comment with a link to more details about the service or product they showcase in a video.
There will be updates to the TikTok Creator Marketplace, where brands can find influencers to partner with. TikTok says it will improve search, help brands and agencies to quickly find creators who match a brief and allow them to invite any user (including those who aren’t on the 800,000-strong TikTok Creator Marketplace) to take part in a campaign.
Meanwhile, TikTok has announced a feature called Profile Kit. This will allow users to link their accounts to some third-party apps and display some of their videos there. TikTok’s first partner for this initiative is Linktree. You’ll be able to display some of your TikToks on your Linktree “link in bio” page alongside links to your other social media profiles.
Microsoft’s HoloLens headsets for the US Army have some teething troubles. Bloomberg and Insider say a recent unclassified report reveals the current Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) iteration is creating problems for soldiers in tests. Some testers suffered nausea, headaches and eyestrain while using the augmented reality goggles. Others were concerned about bulk, a limited field of view and a display glow that could reveal a soldier’s position even at long distances.
A Microsoft worker talking to Insider claimed IVAS failed four out of six elements in one test. The Defense Department’s Operational Test and Evaluation Director, Nickolas Guertin, also said there were still too many failures for essential features. Soldier acceptance is still low, according to the report.
The tests are part of a “Soldier Touch Point” program that helps the Army collect real-world feedback and help Microsoft refine the customized HoloLens gear. Ideally, the headsets will provide crucial battlefield information and night vision to infantry.
The military appears to be aware of and addressing issues. In a statement to Insider, Brigadier General Christopher Schneider said IVAS was successful in “most” criteria, but that there were areas where it “fell short” and would receive improvements. Army assistant acquisition secretary Doug Bush cleared the acceptance of an initial batch of 5,000 HoloLens units in August, but that the armed forces branch was modifying its plans to “correct deficiencies.” Microsoft told Bloomberg it still saw IVAS as a “transformational platform” and was moving ahead with delivery for the initial headsets.
The findings don’t necessarily mean the existing IVAS design is deeply flawed. However, they add to a number of difficulties stemming from the 10-year, $21.9 billion contract to supply 120,000 devices. The project created an uproar at Microsoft, where employees objected to working on ‘weapons.’ The Army also delayed the rollout late last year to allow for more development time. It may take a while longer before the technology is ready for combat.
The first two Project Kuiper satellites, prototypes for Amazon’s satellite broadband program, will head to Low Earth Orbit in the first quarter of 2023. Amazon previously announced that the prototypes will launch on top of an ABL Space Systems rocket by the end of this year. While the tech giant will retain its launches with ABL, Project Kuiper will debut with another provider entirely: Its first two satellites will fly on the maiden flight of United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket.
Project Kuiper VP Rajeev Badyal, told The Washington Post that delays coupled with the opportunity to launch with ULA had compelled Amazon to change its plans. The Vulcan Centaur heavy-lift launch vehicle has been in development since 2014, but its first launch has been pushed back repeatedly due to reasons that include delays with the development of its BE-4 engine. BE-4 is a product of Blue Origin, another Jeff Bezos company.
ULA plans to make the Vulcan Centaur its main vehicle after its retires the Atlas V rocket, which relies on Russian-made engine, once it’s through with its 20 remaining launches. The rocket was supposed to have its maiden flight this year, but Astrobotic (its main payload customer for the mission) asked ULA to move the schedule to give it more time to finish its NASA-funded lunar lander.
Amazon says deploying the prototype satellites will help it gather real-world data to be able to finalize its design, deployment and operation plans for its commercial satellite system. Project Kuiper has the authority to launch 3,236 satellites to form a constellation meant to provide internet access even in far-flung locations, similar to SpaceX’s Starlink network. As The Post notes, Amazon will have to deploy half of that number by 2026 to meet its obligations with the FCC. Badyal said the company is on track to meet that even though it has yet to launch its first satellites.
In additional to ferrying Amazon’s Project Kuiper prototypes and the Peregrine lunar lander to outer space, the maiden Vulcan Centaur flight will also serve as the first of the two launches the vehicle must go through to prove that it’s ready for Space Force missions. The US Space Force plans to use the Vulcan Centaur to launch national security satellites, with the first one scheduled to take place in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Following the release of the 2022 iPad Air and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S8 line earlier this spring, there hasn’t been a ton of movement in the tablet world. At IFA, Lenovo announced refreshed versions of the Tab P11 and P11 Pro featuring updated internals…
Earlier this summer, the US FDA greenlit the sale of over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids, and now we’re seeing some from one of the largest audio companies in the world. Sony has announced the availability of its first OTC hearing aids, the $1,000 CRE-C10 and $1,300 CRE-E10, built in partnership with WS Audiology.
The devices are built for daily use for those with mild to moderate hearing loss. They’re controlled via Sony’s “Hearing Control” app that guides users through setup and allows them to personalize settings like volume control. It also allows a “self-fit” that adjusts to appropriate pre-defined hearing profiles “based on thousands of actual, real-life audiogram results,” Sony said.
Sony Electronics, Inc.
The CRE-C10 model (above) offers a battery life of up to 70 hours of continuous use. Sony says they’re one of the smallest OTC hearing aids on the market, offering a discreet design that’s “virtually invisible when worn” and “exceptional sound quality.” It goes on sale this month for $1,000 at Amazon, Best Buy, and select hearing-care professionals.
Meanwhile, the CRE-E10 (at top) has a more earbud-like design, powered by a rechargeable battery with up to 26 hours of life between charges. It’s Bluetooth compatible as well, so users can connect to devices and listen to streaming audio or music, though only on iOS, Sony says. Those will go on sale for $1,300 sometime this winter at Sony’s website.
Last year, Bose and Lexie unveiled their own OTC hearing aids with the SoundControl lineup, and launched the first B1 model for $900 a couple of days ago. Companies like Jabra have also leaped in. And last year, Sennheiser sold its consumer audio business to the hearing aid specialist Sonova. While the prices are still not what you’d call cheap, they’re far less than prescription hearing aids that can run $1,000-$4,000 per ear, according to Consumer Reports.
Sony and Honda have announced (PDF) that they’re planning to start accepting pre-orders for their first electric vehicle model in the first half of 2025. Their joint venture, which they’ve simply named Sony Honda Mobility Inc. (SHM), is hoping to start deliveries in the United States by spring of 2026. In Japan, deliveries are expected to begin in the second half of 2026. According to Reuters, the companies are considering a European launch, as well, but they have no solid plans for the region at the moment.
The companies didn’t give us a glimpse of the vehicle they’re working on during the event, and they didn’t mention anything about its pricing or its battery technology and range. They did say, however, that they’re planning to focus on online sales like Tesla does and that the first model will have a “somewhat high price range.” Honda will manufacture their first model at its facility in North America, while Sony will be in charge of developing the vehicle’s software system and sensors. SHM is aiming to develop a Level 3 autonomous driving system, which means its cars will eventually have the capability to drive itself in certain conditions.
Reuters also said that Sony’s software system will offer a monthly subscription for entertainment and other services, providing SMH with recurring revenue. The company is even looking into providing new types of in-vehicle entertainment, including those based in the metaverse. SMH Chairman and CEO Yasuhide Mizuno said during the event that the joint company is “speedily” developing its first vehicle. He said that SMH can’t miss taking pre-orders in 2025, as the firm believes that year will be a turning point for vehicle electrification.
Yes, we’ve got full reviews of Google’s new flagship phones as well as its first smartwatch. The phones fare better than the wearable, but we are on the seventh generation of Pixel smartphones, so that’s to be expected.
In addition to new software features and Tensor G2 chip, the Pixel 7 Pro gets a number of extra hardware upgrades compared to the standard Pixel 7. There’s a longer 5x telephoto zoom, and its ultra-wide cam can also take macro shots. The Pixel 7 Pro’s battery doesn’t last quite as long as its smaller, cheaper sibling, but it will easily last a day. But most importantly, priced at $899, the Pixel 7 Pro offers more for your money than most of its rivals.
Engadget
With the $599 Pixel 7, the specs and hardware haven’t changed a ton since last year’s device, but battery life is good, lasting almost 18 hours on our video rundown test. It’s also got a nicer matte finish compared to the glossy Pro. Check out our full review of both phones here.
Meanwhile, we have all the big Microsoft news, including early impressions of some new Surface PCs.
– Mat Smith
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The Pixel Watch, well, just feels good. As Engadget’s Cherlynn Low puts it, it’s like a “smooth, shiny pebble.” As a smartwatch, though? The software is competent, and Fitbit’s health-tracking integrations are excellent. Unfortunately, the Pixel Watch has a relatively short battery life and a Fitbit Premium paywall barricades many health metrics. But if you’re looking for an Android-friendly wearable that feels as premium as Apple, this might be it.
It’s been four years since we got the Surface Studio 2, Microsoft’s flexible all-in-one PC. Now it’s time for a, er, mild upgrade. The Surface Studio 2+ is indeed significantly faster than before, thanks to Intel’s 11th-gen CPU and NVIDIA’s RTX 3060 graphics. But we’ve also spent most of this year being impressed by Intel’s terrific 12th-gen hybrid chips, which deliver vastly better performance than 11th-gen CPUs. It’s not called the Surface Studio 3 for a reason, I guess, but prices still start at $4,300.
The Surface Pro 9 is pretty much what we expected: a jump up to Intel’s 12th-gen CPUs. But Microsoft surprised us with a huge shakeup for its tablet PCs. There’s also a Surface Pro 9 running a custom SQ3 ARM chip, which includes built-in 5G. Choices! Either way, you’re getting tablet PCs that can easily transform into functional laptops with their keyboard cases.
The SQ3 Arm model also has a few features the Intel version doesn’t, thanks to its neural processor. That includes some real-time enhancements to video chats, like blurring your background. According to Microsoft, it’s possible to bring those features to Intel chips when they have their own neural chips, but unfortunately, those aren’t available in Intel’s current lineup.
Researchers who grew a brain cell culture in a lab claim they taught the cells to play a version of Pong. Scientists from a biotech startup called Cortical Labs say it’s the first demonstrated example of a “mini-brain” being taught to carry out goal-directed tasks. DishBrain received a strong and consistent feedback signal (effectively a form of stimulus) when the paddle hit the ball and a short, random pulse when it missed. Apparently, after playing Pong for 20 minutes, the culture improved at the game.
It’s launching a video doorbell, cameras and smart bulbs.
Roku is expanding beyond home theater setups and into smart home devices. The initial batch of Roku Smart Home products, which it collaborated on with Wyze, includes a smart doorbell, cameras, smart bulbs, smart light strips and smart plugs. The company didn’t reveal specs for the devices in advance, but previous reports suggested they are rebadged versions of Wyze products, including Cam v3, Cam Pan V2 and Bulb Color. You’ll also be able to use the Roku Voice Remote to bring up live camera feeds on your TV. Roku didn’t offer a breakdown of pricing, but said its cameras “start below $27.”
It’s always nice to see something beyond what we’d expect from Microsoft. Microsoft has unveiled an Audio Dock that, as the name implies, combines a speaker with a laptop hub. The design centers on an omni-directional speakerphone and includes a 60W USB-C connection for charging your computer, two regular USB-C ports, an HDMI 2.0 jack and a single USB-A port. The company is leaning heavily on the Audio Dock’s usefulness for meetings, whether that’s from the office or the home office. You’ll find large dedicated buttons for the microphone toggle (handy for working from home) and launching Teams. Because Microsoft.
