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Why Nintendo can get away with a $450 Switch 2 price

When Nintendo announced the Switch 2 would cost $450, my initial reaction was disappointment. Γ’ΒΒWhy does it cost so much more?Γ’ΒΒ I thought to myself. Γ’ΒΒWhy does Japan get it cheaper?Γ’ΒΒ my brain jealously added, once I learned that Nintendo would sell a Japan-only model for the equivalent of just $333.
It felt like Nintendo was about to overcharge the entire rest of the world for a modest improvement to its original $300 console, one that doesnΓ’ΒΒt come with an OLED display or anti-drift magnetic sticks. Surely it canΓ’ΒΒt cost Nintendo that much more to make, especially seeing how itΓ’ΒΒs selling the exact same hardware for so much Γ’ΒΒlessΓ’ΒΒ in Japan?Β
But while Nintendo might be charging more than IΓ’ΒΒd like to spend, particularly with its $80 games and its button that makes you pay extra, I no longer think the companyΓ’ΒΒs being distinctly unfair to gamers outside of Japan. The $450 price makes more sense when you consider whatΓ’ΒΒs happened to the dollar and the yen.Β

Since its March 3rd, 2017, debut, Nintendo basically hasnΓ’ΒΒt changed the price of the original Switch in either the US or Japan. The portable console cost $300 USD or ΓΒ₯32,378 in 2017; it costs the same $300 …
Apple Maps on the web leaves beta, now works on mobile devices

Apple last year introduced a beta version of Apple Maps on the web, which allowed users of other platforms to access the companyβs mapping service for the first time. However, Apple Maps on the web was labeled as βbetaβ β until now. And as the platform is no longer beta, it has also gained support for mobile devices.
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Latest Tech News from Ars Technica
- The Trek Madone SLR 9 Gen 8 tears up the roads and conquers climbs
The Trek Madone SLR 9 Gen 8 tears up the roads and conquers climbs
When a cyclist sees the Trek Madone SLR 9 Gen 8 AXS for the first time, the following thoughts run through their head, usually in this order:
"What a beautiful bike."
"Damn, that looks really fast."
Β© Eric Bangeman
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Tech News - Latest Technology and Gadget News | Sky News
- From AI Barbie to 'Ghiblification' - how ChatGPT's image generator put 'insane' pressure on OpenAI
From AI Barbie to 'Ghiblification' - how ChatGPT's image generator put 'insane' pressure on OpenAI
WhatsApp gets a dozen new features inspired by others

WhatsApp has rolled out a dozen new features across chats, calls, and channels that make it easier to manage group conversations, alongside other general quality-of-life improvements. One of the more notable additions is a new βOnlineβ indicator for groups, which displays how many participants are currently using the app in real time.
This is one of several new features that are similar to capabilities on competing communications platforms like Discord, which highlights the online status of server participants. WhatsApp hasnβt mentioned if users will be able to override their own status indicator to manually set themselves as online/offline, but it should make it easier to see how many users are actively reading the chat.
Notifications in group chats will now be easier to manage and organize if you find them overwhelming. Users can select the new βNotify forβ setting and tap βHighlightβ to place specific limitations on notifications for replies, @mentions, and messages from saved contacts, or select βAllβ to receive every notification. Group chat participants can also tap on reactions that other users have left on messages to add the same reaction, much like Discord and Slack users can.

Events have been updated to allow users to RSVP as βmaybe,β invite a plus one, and specify an end date and time. Events can now also be created in direct messages, and pinned in group chats to make them easier to find.
Two features that are exclusively for iPhone users include a built-in document reader that allows users to scan, crop, and save document files without opening a separate app, and the ability to set WhatsApp as the default app for calls and messages. iPhone users can make the switch by opening their device settings, tapping on βDefault Apps,β and selecting WhatsApp.
In the WhatsApp updates tab, users will now find transcriptions of voice messages that theyβve received, and a voice notes feature that allows channel admins to record videos of up to 60 seconds that can be instantly shared with followers. Channel admins can now also link people directly to their channels via a QR code.
Finally, WhatsApp says that video calls have been upgraded to make them βmore reliable and higher quality.β WhatsApp users can be added to an ongoing call directly within a chat thread by tapping the call icon, and call participants can now pinch to zoom in to get a closer look at the live video.
Digg will let you reserve your username (for a price)

Diggβs return to the modern internet is one step closer with the launch of an βearly accessβ group called Groundbreakers. For a one-off $5 fee you can claim your username before someone else does and get a behind the scenes look at the new Digg as it comes together.Β
Digg says that the $5 fee βkeeps the bots at bay,β and that proceeds will go to a nonprofit to be chosen by the Groundbreakers community. Itβs a one-off charge, not an ongoing subscription.
In addition to locking down their username, members of Groundbreakers will get early access to mockups and previews of the new Digg, with the chance to give feedback directly to the development team. Theyβll also get a permanent Groundbreakers badge on their profile once Digg goes live. Itβs worth noting that this isnβt actually early access to Digg itself just yet, but a group on the Circle community platform.
The rebooted Digg was announced last month, with original founder Kevin Rose returning alongside a group that includes Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian. It will still be centered around sharing and voting on links, but takes inspiration from the rise of Reddit and will incorporate AI to help user-led communities with moderation.
Invites to join Groundbreakers were initially sent out to Diggβs mailing list, but you can now sign up without an invite. Thereβs apparently a limited number of spaces, though Digg hasnβt said how many.
Juno Gave NASA Controllers Quite the Scare During Recent Jupiter Flyby

The intrepid probe entered into safe mode, likely as it flew through Jupiter's radiation belts.
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Latest Tech News from WIRED
- This Famous Physics Experiment Shows Why the Government Should Support βUselessβ Science
This Famous Physics Experiment Shows Why the Government Should Support βUselessβ Science
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Latest Tech News from Ars Technica
- Researcher uncovers dozens of sketchy Chrome extensions with 4 million installs
Researcher uncovers dozens of sketchy Chrome extensions with 4 million installs
Google is hosting dozens of extensions in its Chrome Web Store that perform suspicious actions on the more than 4 million devices that have installed it and that the developer has taken pains to carefully conceal.
The extensions, which so far number at least 35, use the same code patterns, connect to some of the same servers, and require the same list of sensitive systems permissions, including the ability to interact with web traffic on all URLs visited, access cookies, manage browser tabs, and execute scripts. In more detail, the permissions are:
- Tabs: manage and interact with browser windows
- Cookies: set and access stored browser cookies based on cookie or domain names (ex., "Authorization" or "all cookies for GitHub.com")
- WebRequest: intercept and modify web requests the browser makes
- Storage: ability to store small amounts of information persistently in the browser (these extensions store their command & control configuration here)
- Scripting: the ability to inject new JavaScript into web pages and manipulate the DOM
- Alarms: an internal messaging service to trigger events. The extension uses this to trigger events like a cron job as it can allow for scheduling the heartbeat callbacks by the extension
- <all_urls>: This works in tandem with other permissions like webRequest, but allows for the extension to be functionally interact all browsing activity (completely unnecessary for an extension that should just look at your installed extensions
These sorts of permissions give extensions the ability to do all sorts of potentially abusive things and, as such, should be judiciously granted only to trusted extensions that canβt perform core functions without them.
Β© Getty Images
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Latest Tech News from Ars Technica
- βWhat the hell are you doing?β How I learned to interview astronauts, scientists, and billionaires
βWhat the hell are you doing?β How I learned to interview astronauts, scientists, and billionaires
I recently wrote a story about the wild ride of the Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station last summer. It was based largely on an interview with the commander of the mission, NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore.
His account of Starlinerβs thruster failuresβand his desperate efforts to keep the vehicle flying on courseβwas riveting. In the aftermath of the story, many readers, people on social media, and real-life friends congratulated me on conducting a great interview. But truth be told, it was pretty much all Wilmore.
Essentially, when I came into the room, he was primed to talk. I'm not sure if Wilmore was waiting for me specifically to talk to, but he pretty clearly wanted to speak with someone about his experiences aboard the Starliner spacecraft. And he chose me.
Β© Lee Hutchinson
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Latest Tech News from Ars Technica
- Rocket Report: βNo manβs landβ in rocket wars; Isaacman lukewarm on SLS
Rocket Report: βNo manβs landβ in rocket wars; Isaacman lukewarm on SLS
Welcome to Edition 7.39 of the Rocket Report! Not getting your launch fix? Buckle up. We're on the cusp of a boom in rocket launches as three new megaconstellations have either just begun or will soon begin deploying thousands of satellites to enable broadband connectivity from space. If the megaconstellations come to fruition, this will require more than a thousand launches in the next few years, on top of SpaceX's blistering Starlink launch cadence. We discuss the topic of megaconstellations in this week's Rocket Report.
As always, we welcome reader submissions. If you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.

So, what is SpinLaunch doing now?Β Ars Technica has mentioned SpinLaunch, the company that literally wants to yeet satellites into space, in previous Rocket Report newsletters. This company enjoyed some success in raising money for its so-crazy-it-just-might-work idea of catapulting rockets and satellites into the sky, a concept SpinLaunch calls "kinetic launch." But SpinLaunch is now making a hard pivot into small satellites, a move that, on its face, seems puzzling after going all-in on kinetic launch, and even performing several impressive hardware tests, throwing a projectile to altitudes of up to 30,000 feet. Ars got the scoop, with the company's CEO detailing why and how it plans to build a low-Earth orbit telecommunications constellation with 280 satellites.
Β© United Launch Alliance
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Latest Mac & Apple News
- Writing Tools needs one feature to make it an essential part of Apple Intelligence
Writing Tools needs one feature to make it an essential part of Apple Intelligence

The most recent instance of benefiting from Apple Intelligence with about 70% satisfaction just occurred. Iβm writing another piece using an and Magic Keyboard. I selected the opening paragraph, invoked Writing Tools, and selected Proofread.
This is how the proofread version was presented:
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