Wacom’s Cintiq Pro 27 drawing display is its first with a 4K 120Hz screen

Wacom has unveiled one of its most advanced drawing tablets yet for creatives, the $3,500 Cintiq Pro 27. It has an all-new compact design, a 26.9-inch, 120Hz 4K reference touch display and all-new Pro Pen 3 that’s adjustable for weight, balance, button layout and thickness. 

The Cintiq Pro 27 is actually smaller than the Cintiq Pro 24, thanks to the significantly slimmer bezels. Wacom also moved the ExpressKey buttons to the back left and right sides, but they’re located on the grips to make them easy to find and use. 

While previous models effectively required an external monitor to view accurate colors, the new multi-touch display is effectively a reference monitor itself. It uses a true 10-bit and not a dithered 8-bit 4K panel, delivering 99 percent of the Adobe RGB gamut and 98 percent of the DCI-P3 (HDR) gamut. It also runs at 120Hz for smooth and responsive drawing and has a peak brightness of 400 nits, just enough to display HDR content. It’s even Pantone SkinTone validated, meeting the Pantone standard for the full range of human skin tones.

The faster refresh allows the new Pro Pen 3 to track twice as quickly as previous models. And the pen itself is customizable, giving users the ability to change the size, weight, center of gravity and even the button layout via swappable parts. The battery-free electro-magnetic resonance tech offers 8,192 levels of pressure and ships with five standard and five felt-tip nibs.

The Ergo Stand supports 20 degrees of screen rotation along with tilting functions, but it’s not included in the price and costs $500. However, the display also supports VESA mounts if you prefer to go that route. The Cintiq Pro 27 is now available for $3,500 from Wacom and select retailers — a lot of money to be sure, but more reasonable as a professional tool. 

The Morning After: Does Samsung have another phone-battery problem?

A few years ago, Samsung had major battery issues when several faulty Galaxy Note 7 phones had exploding batteries. The devices were recalled, and the company spent a lot of time over the following years outlining all the rigorous battery tests it did to ensure it didn’t happen again.

Now, YouTuber Mrwhosetheboss, as well as others, have noticed batteries in Samsung phones are swelling up at a disproportionately high rate. This usually affects older devices, but some are only a couple of years old – the 2020-era Galaxy Z Fold 2, for instance.

Samsung hasn’t formally responded yet, but battery swelling isn’t a new problem, nor one unique to Galaxy phones. As lithium batteries age, their increasingly flawed chemical reactions can produce gas that inflates battery cells. Many companies suggest you keep device batteries at a roughly 50 percent charge if you won’t use them for extended periods.

– Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

Department of Transportation approves EV charging plans for all 50 states

$1.5 billion is available to fund charging stations along highways.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law earmarked $5 billion in funding over five years to help states install chargers along highways, and that process just took an important step forward. The Department of Transportation has approved EV charging plans for all 50 states, Washington DC and Puerto Rico. The proposals cover 75,000 miles of highways.

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The latest iPadOS 16 beta brings Stage Manager to older iPad Pro models

An M1 chip is no longer required, with a caveat.

The biggest change with iPadOS 16 may be Stage Manager, a totally new multitasking system that adds overlapping, resizable windows to the iPad. The latest iPadOS 16 developer beta can run Stage Manager on several older devices: It’ll work on the 11-inch iPad Pro (first generation and later) and the 12.9-inch iPad Pro (third generation and later). However, there is one notable missing feature for the older iPad Pro models – Stage Manager will only work on the iPad’s built-in display. You won’t be able to extend your display to an external monitor.

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Intel’s 13th-gen CPUs offer up to 24 cores and 5.8GHz speeds

The Core i9-13900K sounds like a beast.

Intel’s 13th-gen Core chips, AKA Raptor Lake, have landed. The company’s new top-end chip, the Core i9-13900K, sports 24 cores (eight performance cores and 16 efficiency cores) and can reach up to a 5.8GHz Max Turbo frequency. Last year’s i9-12900K offered 16 cores and a maximum speed of 5.2 GHz. Intel claims the new 13900K is 41 percent better for multi-threaded work, like video encoding. If you skipped last year’s chips or are running even older Intel hardware, the 13th-gen CPUs look like the update you’ve been waiting for.

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Volvo has developed the world’s first interior radar system for cars

It’s a new safety feature.

Set to debut on its upcoming flagship EX90 electric SUV, Volvo’s new radar system monitors both the cabin and trunk, to prevent a car from being locked while anyone is inside. The idea is to guard against situations where pets or children may be inadvertently trapped inside a car on a hot day, with the car surfacing reminders if it recognizes there are occupants inside when being locked. Volvo says the multiple radars in the trunk, in the car’s overhead console and in roof-mounted reading lamps can detect “sub-millimeter” movements.

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Apple Watch SE review (2022)

The best smartwatch $250 can buy.

TMA
Engadget

Apple, of all companies, delivering the most competitively priced smartwatch you can buy in 2022? Apple’s starter smartwatch offers a comprehensive suite of health and fitness tracking tools, emergency features and snappy performance. As long as you’re not extremely clumsy or impatient, you won’t miss features like the hardier screen, dust resistance or the always-on display found on the more expensive models.

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Chipotle is moving its tortilla robot to a real restaurant

The chain is also piloting AI that tells kitchen staff what to cook.

Chipotle’s tortilla-making robot is moving to a real restaurant. In October, the machine will start cooking tortilla chips in Fountain Valley, California. Feedback from customers and workers will help the company decide on a national rollout. Artificial intelligence will influence some human cooks, too. Chipotle is piloting a demand-based cooking system that uses AI to tell staff what and when to cook based on forecasts for how much they’ll need.

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Fujifilm X-H2S camera review

The most powerful APS-C camera yet.

TMA
Engadget

With the X-H2S, Fujifilm has a new flagship camera. It features a new 26.2-megapixel stacked sensor that delivers shooting speeds up to 40 fps in electronic shutter mode. At the same time, it has the most advanced video features of any APS-C camera, with up to 6.2K video. It also offers in-body stabilization, a high-resolution EVF, CFexpress support and more. The main drawback: The autofocus still isn’t quite as fast as rival cameras.

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Shark’s self-emptying robot vacuum is half off for today only

One of Shark’s higher-end robot vacuums is on sale at Amazon, and you may want to check it out if you’re looking for a model with a clean base. The Shark IQ RV1001AE robot vacuum is currently listed for $300, and the deal is only available today. That’s half off the model’s original retail price of $600 and just a dollar more than its all-time low on the website. The RV1001AE vacuum features powerful suction that can clean both bare floors and carpets, as well as a self-cleaning brush roll that can remove pet and human hair on its own. No more balls of tangled hair getting stuck and preventing the vacuum from being able to clean efficiently.

Buy Shark RV1001AE IQ Robot at Amazon – $300

The machine cleans the floor row by row, and its IQ navigation capability means it can map your whole home so that you can select specific rooms to clean. If it runs out of battery, it can even go back to its dock, recharge and pick up from where it left off. When you want to the robot to start cleaning, you can get it to move by controlling it with your voice through Alexa and Google Assistant. And yes, the vacuum is also connected to the company’s app, which you can use to schedule cleanings for your whole house or for certain rooms at specific hours of the day. The robot empties its bin into the clean base once it’s done, and that bagless base can hold up to 45 days’ worth of dirt.

In case you’d rather get a model you can manually use — maybe your pet is deathly afraid of robot vacuums or maybe you personally want to make sure no corner gets missed — Shark has another two models on sale at Amazon. The Shark IZ363HT has a self-cleaning brush roll, as well, and is listed for $230 at 34 percent off. Meanwhile, the Shark IZ483H is currently on sale for $300, or $200 off its regular price. It has a self-cleaning brush roll, a removable hand vacuum and a 120-minute battery life on a single charge.

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Apple pulls Russia’s biggest social media network from the App Store

Russia has removed all iOS apps from VK, the second largest tech company in Russia, The Verge has reported. That includes not just the VK social media app that’s the fifth most popular in Russia, but others like Mail.ru and VK Music. The move was made in response to UK sanctions against the Russian government.  

VK confirmed that “some VK applications are blocked by Apple, so they are not available for download and update in the App Store,” according to a (Google translated) press release. “Their core functionality will be familiar and stable… [but] there may be difficulties with notifications and payments. VK will continue to develop and support applications for iOS.”

These apps are being distributed by developers majority-owned or majority-controlled by one or more parties sanctioned by the UK government. In order to comply with these sanctions, Apple terminated the developer accounts associated with these apps, and the apps cannot be downloaded from any App Store, regardless of location.

Apple confirmed that it removed the apps and shut down VK’s developer accounts. “These apps are being distributed by developers majority-owned or majority-controlled by one or more parties sanctioned by the UK government,” a spokesperson told The Verge. “In order to comply with these sanctions, Apple terminated the developer accounts associated with these apps, and the apps cannot be downloaded from any App Store, regardless of location. Users who have already downloaded these apps may continue to use them.”

Earlier this week, the UK government imposed sanctions on Russian oligarchs over the sham referendums held in Ukraine. Included in the list are executives from Gazprombank, a Russian bank with ties to VK. “Today’s sanctions will target those behind these sham votes, as well as the individuals that continue to prop up the Russian regime’s war of aggression,” said UK foreign secretary James Cleverly in a statement. 

Russia’s Ministry of Digital Affairs told state media site RT that it’s investigating the reasons for the removal. The apps are still available on Google Play — Engadget has reached out to Google to see if it plans to follow Apple’s lead. 

Earlier this year, Apple halted sales of all its products in Russia in response to the Ukraine invasion, while also limiting Apple Pay and pulling apps from outlets like RT and Sputnik. Last year, a Russian law went into effect that required Samsung, Apple and other manufacturers to pre-install Russian apps like VK and Yandex on devices sold there. 

Logitech refreshes its range of Mac-specific MX keyboards and mice

Logitech is today announcing a quartet of products in its Designed for Mac series of wireless accessories. The first headline item is the MX Mechanical Mini (for Mac), an Apple-favoring variation on the existing MX Mini which launched earlier this year…

Bowers & Wilkins’ Px8 headphones combine new drivers with refined design

Bowers & Wilkins promised its next flagship headphones would debut later this year when it revealed the redesigned Px7 S2 model over the summer. Today, the company sticks to its word by officially unveiling the Px8. While Bowers & Wilkins retains much of it’s signature look for this new version, there are some notable updates — especially on the inside. The premium looks and what the company calls “the best sound quality” it has ever offered in a set of wireless headphones will cost you $699. 

Inside, new 40mm carbon cone drivers power the “new reference standard for sound,” as Bowers & Wilkins describes it. The company says these components offer improved detail, resolution and “spaciousness” over the Px7 S2. As it has on previous models, Bowers & Wilkins angled those new drive units for consistent distance to the listener’s ear across their surface. The company explains that this creates a “more immersive and highly accurate soundstage,” edging ever closer to “the artist’s intent.” It certainly worked well on the Px7 S2. 

The Px8 supports aptX Adaptive and thanks to Bowers & Wilkins’ digital signal processing (DSP), these headphones can handle 24-bit streaming from the applicable services. Plus, you can now play tunes from Deezer, Qobuz and TIDAL directly from the company’s Music app, the same software that’s used to configure the headphones. 

The other big change on the Px8 is Bowers & Wilkins’ choice of materials. The arm construction is now made out of cast aluminum, shaped to meet the company’s signature look. Memory foam cushions line the inside of the earcups, wrapped in Nappa leather and coming in black or tan color options. All of that certainly combines for a more refined look than the Px7 S2.

Bowers & Wilkins Px8
Bowers & Wilkins

The company says the Px8 packs the same active noise cancellation (ANC) platform as the Px7 S2. That’s good, because the ANC setup on that more affordable model did an admirable job during our review. Six microphones total are on board: two to monitor driver output, two to keep tabs on ambient noise and two for voice. On the Px8, Bowers & Wilkins says it moved those last two mics closer together and adjusted their angles to improve voice quality and reduce wind noise. 

Bowers & Wilkins is promising up to 30 hours of battery life on the Px8, same as the Px7 S2. The company doesn’t specify whether that’s with ANC on or off. However, during our review of the previous model I blew past the stated time using active noise cancellation. I still had 33 percent in the tank at the 30-hour mark. On the Px8, a 15-minute quick charge session will give you up to seven hours of listening time if you find yourself in a pinch. 

The Px8 is available starting today from Bowers & Wilkins and select retailers for $699. If that’s too much for you, that’s certainly understandable. However, the Px7 S2 is $399 and it’s one of our favorite headphones of 2022.