Technology

Apple on Monday unveiled a completely redesigned MacBook Pro lineup alongside two new chip options at its Unleashed event in Cupertino, California. The new MacBook Pro comes in 14-inch or 16-inch models and can be further customized with either the new M1 Pro or M1 Max chip. The computer’s hardware has been updated to include a Liquid Retina XDR display, a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, better audio systems and a broader range of ports — including three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an SDXC card slot, an HDMI port and an improved headphone jack — for better connectivity. The new 14-inch model delivers up to 17 hours of video playback, while the 16-inch model offers up to 21 hours of video playback — the longest battery life ever on a Mac notebook — and delivers the same level of performance whether...

During Apple‘s Unleashed event on Monday, the tech giant officially unveiled its third generation of AirPods. The latest update arrives with an all-new design, equipped with a new low distortion driver that delivers powerful bass and clear high frequencies. The listening device supports spatial audio, which provides a three-dimensional immersive listening experience for both surround-sound music and videos. By combining the power of the H1 chip with a new acoustic system, the new AirPods utilize computational audio to produce high-quality sound with Adaptive EQ. The design, which Apple says is sweat and water-resistant, presents a new contour that delivers sound “directly to your ears” as well as real-time tuning audio, like the AirPods Pro. The third-generation AirPods’ battery life has i...

Over 10 years before his departure from Microsoft’s board amid an investigation over an affair with an employee, former CEO Bill Gates was warned by two company executives about inappropriate emails between him and another woman, The Wall Street Journal reported. While he was still an employee at Microsoft and serving as chairman of the board, Gates and a female employee exchanged “flirtatious” emails and propositioned the employee, the Journal reported. He was married at the time. When confronted by two company executives, Gates reportedly didn’t deny the exchanges and said he would stop the interaction. The executives informed some members of Microsoft’s board, but the board ultimately decided that since there was no physical interaction between the woman and Gates, no further action was...

Disney has just announced delays for its 2022 Marvel films, along with the upcoming fifth Indiana Jones movie, all of which have been pushed back to later in the year or moved to 2023. The Marvel movie shifts are the usual chain reaction delay: to push back one movie means pushing back all of them, so there’s a domino effect in pushing everything back a bit: Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is moving from March 25th, 2022 to May 6th (when Thor: Love and Thunder was originally intended to be released). Thor: Love and Thunder, in turn, moves from May 6th to July 8th (when Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was originally scheduled). Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is moving from July 8th to November 11th (when Captain Marvel sequel The Marvels was planned for). The Marvels is moving fr...

Apple is kicking off the very best week in tech with a rare Monday event, one it’s decided to call “Unleashed.” That could refer to any number of things, but at a high level we are expecting it to be about new, redesigned MacBook Pro laptops with Apple’s own processors. Will they be called M1X, M2, or something else? What will the GPU performance be like? Will battery life match the excellent quality of the original generation of M1 Macs? All open questions we hope to see answered today. There should be two sizes, with 14- and 16-inch screens. There have been long-standing rumors that Apple will bring back an SD card reader slot, MagSafe for charging, and may even switch these Macs over to more advanced, Mini-LED displays. Apple is also said to be doing away with the unloved (except by a f...

Third-party health apps that pull patient data from electronic health record systems are vulnerable to hacks, according to a new report. The electronic health records themselves, which are housed at health centers and subject to the federal privacy law HIPAA, are well protected. But as soon as a patient gives permission for their data to leave the health record and head toward a third-party app — like programs that track people’s medications, for example — it’s easy for hackers to access. Hospitals and health care systems are a major target for hackers, and attacks have only escalated over the past few years. Patient health data is some of the most valuable information to hackers: each record can be worth hundreds of dollars on the dark web, in part because they can’t be changed easily and...

Sony’s second colorway for the Pulse 3D headset for PS5 and PS4, clad in midnight black instead of white, is coming out this week. It’s the same $99.99 price as before, and nothing is different about it that I’ve noticed, aside from the matte black headband. If you’re one for embracing dark mode in both your apps and devices, you probably know if you want this already. The Pulse 3D headset was made to be a technical showcase for Sony’s Tempest 3D audio engine built into the PS5 — and it is. At its cost, this model supplies better-than-average sound quality and good positional audio. Games made by PlayStation Studios, like Returnal, Demon’s Souls, Astro’s Playroom, and others, seem to make the most of the 3D audio tech, so try those out if you’re looking for particularly impressive tech dem...

Cowboy has returned with its third-generation e-bike. It’s still the best-looking pedal-assisted electric bike with a removable battery that I’ve ever seen having carried forward the same physical design as the original Cowboy. While the Cowboy 2 from last year was sporty, the Cowboy 3 is mature, focusing on safety rather than fun. The Cowboy 3 is fitted with a variety of safety features including automatic crash detection, a slower top speed, and new puncture-resistant tires of Cowboy design. Version three, like the previous model, also has integrated lighting, with a rear light that flashes red when braking. And believe it or not, Cowboy’s finally making fenders. It’s as if this Belgian startup wants to become the Volvo of e-bikes. Not that that’s a bad thing. Verge Score 8.5 out of 10 G...

It’s been hard to be an Apple power user for the last half-decade. The glory days of the original Retina MacBook Pro have long since vanished into the sunset, and recent years have seen computers with too many compromises and too few ports. And while Apple’s first wave of M1-powered computers have been excellent, they’ve all been — relatively — low-powered. The MacBook Air, the M1 MacBook Pro, Mac Mini, and iMac are the cheapest computers Apple makes, meant more for checking email, writing essays, and the occasional light photo editing than they are for cranking out 4K video or Photoshop projects hundreds of layers deep. That may be about to change with the presumed announcement of new, high-end MacBook Pro models, computers that are rumored to be Apple’s biggest laptop update in years. An...

Legendary video game designer Hideo Kojima has collaborated with French eyewear specialist Jean-François Rey to produce a limited-edition quartet of shades, specs, and a 3D-printed mask. The capsule collection is available to preorder now for unknown prices, with delivery slated for March 2022. The designs were apparently inspired by the look and feel of Kojima’s Death Stranding (not the first time that particular game has led to high-fashion collaborations), but I feel they would fit happily into a number of Kojima’s near-contemporary or futuristic game worlds. Perhaps they’d even adorn the face of one the many wonderfully-named Metal Gear Solid characters. May we suggest: Cool Glassesman. (It’s no worse than Hot Coldman.) The collection consists of four pieces. First is HKxJF01, below: a...

Facebook‘s virtual reality head and soon-to-be CTO Andrew Bosworth and Mark Zuckerberg took to their social media channels to tease the new VR technology. Zuckerberg and Bosworth posted photos of themselves playing with the new technology. Both Facebook executives were able to give fans an inside look at what goes on behind the scenes at the company’s virtual reality lab. In Bosworth’s Tweet, he said, “Excited to get an early look at some of the technologies that will underpin the metaverse.” He also ensured tech aficionados that the company is looking for different ways to improve the concept of their VR headsets and prototypes. The headset Zuckerberg is seen wearing appears to share aesthetic similarities to Facebook’s Oculus headsets. However, he does mention that the particular prototy...

Elon Musk is now worth more than both Bill Gates and Warren Buffet combined. As of Friday, the SpaceX and Tesla CEO has reached a net worth of $230 billion USD, securing his place as the world’s richest man while Gates sits at fourth place with $130 billion USD and Buffet at 10th with $102 billion USD according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Both Gates and Buffet were also the world’s richest person at one point, but philanthropic donations have significantly lowered their wealth. As for Musk, the tech mogul added more than $60 billion USD to his name this year alone largely thanks to a surge in Tesla’s stock price as well as a recent share sale for SpaceX, which is now valued at $100 billion USD. Musk overtook Amazon‘s Jeff Bezos to take first place on the billionaires list back in ...