Technology

Now that Obi-Wan has his own show, there’s only one logical next step: an appearance in Fortnite. Epic announced that Mr. Kenobi will be the latest Star Wars character in the battle royale when he hits the game’s item shop on May 26th. That’s the day before the new show Obi-Wan Kenobi debuts on Disney Plus. In addition to the Jedi Knight himself, players can also snap up a bundle that includes a Jedi Interceptor glider and a pickaxe blade that is sadly not a lightsaber. Of course, this is far from the crossover between Fortnite and Star Wars. Just this month, Epic temporarily added lightsabers back into the game, and prior to that, characters like the Mandalorian have been notable additions to new Fortnite seasons. In 2019, J.J. Abrams stopped by the virtual world to show off a clip from T...

Meta and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg can’t catch a break — everyone just keeps saying that they don’t want to live in the metaverse. This week, it’s Amazon’s head of devices David Limp, who said that he doesn’t want to live in a virtual world 24 / 7, or even a few hours a day. Limp expressed similar views when interviewed last month by the Financial Times, where he spent most of his time espousing his vision of ambient computing — the idea that the computer is everywhere — as he’s been keen to do over the last year and change. While speaking at The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival, Limp was asked what he was thinking about the metaverse. He said that while he does believe that there’ll be “some form of place-shifting” in the future, he’s focused on devices that “enhanc...

Samsung has released a Pokémon-themed poké ball case for its Galaxy Buds true wireless earbuds in South Korea. It’s the perfect accessory for anyone who’d prefer their charging case to look dope as hell rather than to be able to easily fit in their pocket. Gizmodo reports that the case is a limited edition, and it also appears to be exclusive to South Korea where it costs 134,000 won (around $105). Unlike a very similar wireless earbud charging case that Razer released in 2020, Samsung’s poké ball doesn’t appear to be charging its earbuds directly. Instead, the idea is that you put the regular charging case for your Galaxy Buds 2, Galaxy Buds Pro, or Galaxy Buds Live (aka the Galaxy Beans) inside the poké ball, where it’s presumably ready to be deployed mid-battle. Samsung also includes a ...

LG just took the wraps off a new flagship CineBeam ultra-short throw (UST) projector, model HU915QE. The 4K three-channel laser projector blasts a super bright 3,700 ANSI lumen image that measures 100 inches when placed just 9.8cm (3.9 inches) from a wall, thanks to an excellent 0.19 throw ratio. Other UST projectors like the AWOL LTV-3500 require a distance of 24.9cm (9.8 inches) to achieve that same 100-inch diagonal picture size. And while that might not sound like a large span, it can easily exceed the width of common sideboards where the projector will live. Better yet, you can place the new LG CineBeam 18.3cm (7.2 inches) from an Ambient Light Rejection (ALR) screen for a giant 120-inch picture with improved contrast (to make the most of the projector’s support for HDR10, HLG, HGiG) ...

Apple‘s long-awaited iPhone 14 range is now expected to be unveiled this September. According to a new report from Phone Arena, the tech giant is planning to announce the latest additions to its flagship smartphone series on September 13, with four new models expected: the 6.1-inch iPhone 14, the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Max, the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro and the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max. The latter two are rumored to come with Apple’s brand new 4nm A16 Bionic chipset while the former two will retain their predecessor’s 5nm A15 Bionic SoC. The report also suggests that the iPhone 14 Pro models will do away with the top notch and replace it with an “i-shaped” cutout carrying the FaceTime camera as well as the True Depth Camera, while the lower-tiered options will continue to feature the notch...

The Steam Deck just spent five weeks at number one on Valve’s top seller list — on top of the five weeks it spent at number two. As one of the most affordable gaming PCs ever made, the $400-plus machine has clearly captured the attention of those who’d been waiting for a Switch-like portable gaming PC. But what of the companies that were already making Switch-like portable gaming PCs? They now have their chance at revenge. That’s because all of the Steam Deck’s chief rivals — GPD, Aya, and OneXPlayer — have now confirmed they’re building handhelds around AMD’s Ryzen 6000U chips. And the 6800U, with its integrated Radeon 680M graphics, reportedly has the potential to squash the semi-custom Aerith SoC at the heart of the Steam Deck. The GPD Win Max 2 is a mini-laptop with added buttons and j...

In the coming weeks, Google will begin beta testing a feature for Android 13 that makes it easier for users of braille displays to get up and running. Google announced in a blog post on Thursday that the next Android 13 beta will include “out-of-the-box support” for braille displays. Braille displays are used to create pin patterns to touch-read on-screen text and also type in braille. The display allows people with deafblindness to use smartphones and people who are blind to silently use mobile phones without screen readers or voice commands. Braille display support was already available on Android with Google’s screen reader Talkback, but now you won’t have to install another app first to access the feature. Braille display users will continue to access the same functionality like naviga...

A Meta executive told employees on Thursday that they are prohibited from talking about abortion on Workplace, an internal version of Facebook, citing “an increased risk” that the company is seen as a “hostile work environment.” The policy, which Meta put in place in 2019 but hasn’t been reported until now, prohibits employees from discussing “opinions or debates about abortion being right or wrong, availability or rights of abortion, and political, religious, and humanitarian views on the topic,” according to a section of the company’s internal “Respectful Communication Policy” seen by The Verge. Some employees have called on management to do away with the policy in the aftermath of a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade, arguing that the ban is at odds with ...

Reuters reports TikTok is testing games for the app in Vietnam ahead of a “major push” into the space. A company representative confirmed tests of HTML5 mini-games, saying, “We’re always looking at ways to enrich our platform and regularly test new features and integrations that bring value to our community.” The outlet’s sources indicate the plan is for ad-supported games that draw from the library of its parent company, ByteDance, which could boost revenue and increase the amount of time people spend on the TikTok app — if that’s even possible. Disco Loco 3DImage: Zynga TikTok has already tried at least one in-app mini-game, as it teamed up with Feeding America to make Garden of Good, a FarmVille-like experience where players could earn points and use them to make a donation. It also ann...

Nearly two and a half years after its first launch didn’t go to plan, Boeing’s new passenger spacecraft, the CST-100 Starliner, successfully launched to space this afternoon, reaching the right orbit it needed to achieve to rendezvous with the International Space Station tomorrow evening. The successful launch marks the beginning of a crucial test flight for Starliner that will play out over the next week in space, one that will help demonstrate if the capsule is capable of carrying humans to space one day. Starliner is a private spacecraft that Boeing developed in partnership with NASA, primarily to help transport the agency’s astronauts to and from the International Space Station in low Earth orbit. The capsule is one of two vehicles, along with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, that NASA helped to ...