The Apple iPhone 16e looks like a solid handset for most consumers. It’s got plenty of power, a gorgeous display and the Action button that first debuted with the iPhone 15 Pro series. It doesn’t, however, offer any way to wirelessly charge the device using MagSafe. 

Just because Apple excluded the feature doesn’t mean you’re completely out of luck. Here are a couple of options for using MagSafe charging on an iPhone 16e. The easiest way to get this going is to pick up a MagSafe-compatible smartphone case that has been specifically designed for Apple’s latest handset.

This ESR case seems like a solid entry, and it’s on the cheaper side. We haven’t gotten a chance to review it yet, but an older ESR release with MagSafe functionality easily made our list of the best iPhone cases.

The second option is to go with a simple adapter ring. We recommend this one from PopSockets. It’s budget-friendly, easy to use and allows integration with other MagSafe accessories. Just pop it on a pre-existing case. It's not compatible with silicone, textured or anti-fingerprint coated cases.

The final option? Charge your phone the old-fashioned way, via USB-C, and just tuck the cable out of the way. This may not fool anyone, but it’ll juice the phone up quicker. The iPhone 16e uses the older Qi1 wireless charging standard and maxes out at 7.5w, while the other iPhone 16 models support Qi2 at speeds up to 25w, provided you have the right charger.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/heres-how-to-get-magsafe-charging-on-an-iphone-16e-201026681.html?src=rss

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It’s been well over two years, but the wait is almost over. The second season of Andor hits Disney+ on April 22. The platform just dropped a juicy trailer to get all of us Star Wars fans pumped and ready.

The footage shows plenty of cool stuff, including the return of Rogue One’s chief antagonist Orson Crennic and the beloved droid K-2SO. The Death Star makes an appearance, which isn’t surprising given the ending of the first season. Mon Mothma also attends an extravagant “let them eat cake” type of party. 

There are a few bombastic explosions and several shots of the titular Cassian Andor walking down hallways. One thing this trailer doesn’t spoil is the plot. The footage is just a hodgepodge of cool moments, so we still have no idea what our favorite rebel spy will be getting up to in season two. To me, this is a good thing.

For the uninitiated, Andor is a prequel to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and is set after the rise of the empire but before the events of the original Star Wars movie. It’s very good, with a tone that can only be described as “prestige Star Wars.” It stars Diego Luna, Stellan Skarsgård, Kyle Soller, Denise Gough and, sometimes, Forest Whitaker. Season two brings new actors into the fold, like Adria Arjona.

Disney+ is doing something unique with the release schedule here. Three episodes premiere on April 22, followed by another trio each week for a month. That adds up to 12 episodes. April is a big month for returning genre TV, as season two of The Last of Us premieres on April 13.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/disney-just-dropped-an-explosive-trailer-for-andor-season-2-184842360.html?src=rss

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© Disney+

Apple’s fantastic stylus, the Pencil Pro, is on sale via Amazon for just $99. This is $30 off, which translates to a discount of 23 percent. This isn’t the lowest price we’ve ever seen for this item, but it’s close.

The Apple Pencil Pro is the company’s latest and greatest stylus. It allows for a number of squeeze-based gestures that can be adjusted via a drop-down menu during use. It also includes a gyroscope to detect when the stylus is rolled, which makes it easier to change the orientation of shaped pen and brush tools. Of course, it supports pressure sensitivity.

There's even a haptic engine to deliver vibration-based feedback when the pen is being used. And, maybe most conveniently, it works with Apple's Find My network. After all, stylus pens are small and easy to lose. All of this new tech has been squeezed into a package that’s actually lighter than the second-gen Apple Pencil.

The primary downside here is the price, which has been mostly alleviated by this sale. Before making a purchase, double-check to ensure that your iPad supports the Pencil Pro. It's only compatible with some of the company’s latest tablets, including the 11- and 13-inch iPad Air (M2), and the 11- and 13-inch iPad Pro (M4). It also works with the newest iPad Mini.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-apple-pencil-pro-is-back-on-sale-for-99-162456898.html?src=rss

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© Apple

Fortnite just announced the availability of Chapter 6: Season 2, which has been dubbed Lawless. As the name suggests, this update is all about being a criminal and performing robberies. Fortnite hasn’t dabbled in this kind of GTA-esque tomfoolery since Chapter 4: Season 4, which also included heists.

Starting today, players will be able to perform all kinds of nefarious activities, like robbing banks, stealing armored cars and breaking into luxury locations. The popular battle royale will even let players rob the train that services the island. Oh yeah. There’s also a giant pickle that raps named Big Dill. It has a song on Soundcloud.

There are a handful of new locations to accompany this update, including an urban area called Crime City. Other updated game mechanics include gold water that provides stat boosts, black markets for high-end weapons, and a scanner that detects where enemies are. There’s also a new in-game “crypto currency” called Dill Bits coins, which can be used to buy gear. This automatically makes it more useful than the vast majority of actual crypto coins out there.

Players that pick up this season’s battle pass will have access to several new playable characters, including the aforementioned vinegar-soaked rapper Big Dill. Sub-Zero from Mortal Kombat is also included in this roster for some reason.

Epic Games

A series of Cowboy Bebop quests will also appear in the game beginning on March 1. To accompany these quests, players will be able to dress like the characters Spike Spiegel and Faye Valentine. Lawless runs from today until May 2.

This is just the latest wild and wacky Fortnite update. The game has dabbled with post-apocalyptic locales in the past, in addition to Greek gods, vampires and just about everything else. Most recently, Epic introduced Godzilla as a playable character.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/fortnites-new-season-leans-heavily-on-heist-mechanics-201542184.html?src=rss

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© Epic Games

Meta has offered up a lucrative new executive bonus plan, according to a company filing released Thursday. Under the new plan, executives could earn a yearly bonus of 200 percent of their base salary, which is up from 75 percent. This comes just after Meta announced sweeping layoffs impacting five percent of its workforce.

A committee for Meta’s board of directors approved the change on February 13, on the grounds that the “target total cash compensation” for its executives “was at or below the 15th percentile of the target total cash compensation of executives holding similar positions” at rival companies. It’s worth noting that the new bonus plan doesn’t apply to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Don’t worry about his bottom line, however, as he’s worth nearly $250 billion.

Meta has also decided to slash its annual distribution of stock options by around ten percent for thousands of its regular employees, according to a report by The Financial Times. The exact reduction could differ depending on where the employees live and what they do, but Meta hasn’t commented further on the decision.

As previously noted, Meta is in the process of laying off five percent of its global workforce. This is despite the fact that company shares are up nearly 50 percent over the past year, with a current stock price of around $687 per share. Also, it recently announced that its fourth-quarter revenue grew 21 percent year-over-year to more than $48 billion. The company has cut more than 20,000 jobs in the past couple of years.

"A leaner org will execute its highest priorities faster. People will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling," Zuckerberg said at the tail-end of last year. Nothing says “fun and fulfilling” more than watching your co-workers get laid off while the executives get massive bonuses.

If you’re a current or former Meta employee with thoughts on this new executive bonus structure, hit me up on Signal at LawrenceBonk.96. I’ll ensure that things are kept anonymous.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-approves-massive-bonuses-executives-183222206.html?src=rss

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© The Washington Post via Getty Images

Coinbase says that the SEC has agreed to end an enforcement case that accused it of illegally running an unregistered securities exchange. This could signal a major change in how the US government will enforce the crypto market now that Trump is in office. The lawsuit, which was filed during the Biden administration, has long-been considered an attempt to bring the crypto industry under the same investor-protection rules that govern stocks and other securities.

Coinbase had been fighting the lawsuit on the grounds that it didn’t run a securities company, likening the commodities it sells to baseball cards. That appeal will soon be moot, assuming the SEC officially votes to dismiss the suit. This should happen next week.

“It’s a great day for Coinbase and for crypto,” Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer, told The Wall Street Journal. “We were committed to defending it to the gates of hell, for as long as it took and for as much money as it took.”

Coinbase co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong went on CNBC’s Squawk Box and said that the company will not be paying a fine of any kind. He also said the agreement to end the case marks a “huge day” for Coinbase and that it will cause a “domino effect for the rest of the industry.” He also blamed the original suit on a “small group of activists in this prior administration.”

This move doesn’t come as a huge surprise, given President Trump’s recent embrace of crypto. He even has his own digital coin. To that end, the SEC has already started to break up the special enforcement unit that was devoted to investigating crypto organizations. Coinbase and its rivals spent millions of dollars throughout the last election cycle to help elect crypto-friendly lawmakers. It looks like that investment is paying off.

Acting SEC Chairman Mark Uyeda recently said that the organization would now “deploy enforcement resources judiciously” when investigating crypto companies. He also said that a new task force would be moving away from the commission's previous approach toward the crypto market.

Republican House and Senate lawmakers are working on legislation that would reclassify cryptocurrencies as commodities, according to The Wall Street Journal. This change would likely hand oversight of crypto assets to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which is a much smaller agency than the SEC. The CFTC is actually smaller than ever right now, given that the Trump administration laid off a bunch of employees earlier this week.

The crypto market is certainly responding favorably to all of this news. Coinbase’s stock price is up, and the same goes for Robinhood. Rival market Binance even restored fiat deposits and withdrawals this week, which were suspended in 2023 after the SEC sued the company for violations of securities laws.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/coinbase-says-trumps-sec-has-ended-its-enforcement-case-against-the-crypto-company-171331785.html?src=rss

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© SOPA Images via Getty Images

Among Us VR has proven itself to be a major hit since first being released back in 2022. Now, developers Innersloth and Schell Games have announced they are rejiggering the virtual reality title for traditional PC players. Among Us 3D is playable without a headset and will be available via Steam in the near future.

This title keeps the core gameplay loop from the original, but shifts to a first-person perspective. It's basically a new way to keep sabotaging your friends and family. Among Us 3D is for four to ten players and includes native proximity voice chat, with no need for a third-party platform. All of the minigames are returning, though there’s also some new ones coming down the pike. Innersloth is holding off on those details for now.

It features crossplay with Among Us VR, but not with the original game. That's a bummer, but understandable. There will be, however, an expanded costume selection to offer "an endless number of cosmetic customization combinations." There's a new in-game currency called Stardust that will, presumably, be used to purchase some of those outfits.

There's no release date yet, other than "soon." However, a demo will be available to US players as part of Steam Next Fest from February 24 to March 3. Preorders for the full game are already live on Steam.

This is just the latest cool thing that developer Innersloth has announced. The company recently revealed a publishing arm called Outersloth. There's also an Among Us cartoon coming sometime in the near future.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/among-us-vr-is-being-transformed-into-a-traditional-3d-game-for-pc-194545497.html?src=rss

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It’s been ten long years since Avatar: The Legend of Korra aired its final episode and over 15 years since Avatar: The Last Airbender bowed out. Now, finally, Nickelodeon has greenlit a sequel series and it sounds pretty awesome. Deadline reports that Avatar: Seven Havens will be a 2D animated 26-episode followup that chronicles the rise of the next Avatar after Korra.

Franchise creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are developing the series, so we know it's in good hands. The plot sounds pretty dark. It seems the world has fallen into chaos following a cataclysmic event of some kind. The titular "seven havens" refer to a handful of small civilizations that have managed to weather the storm.

Also, the next Avatar will be a female Earthbender. In this world, however, the Avatar is reviled and seen as a harbinger of doom instead of a hero. That’s an interesting twist.

"This new incarnation of the Avatarverse is full of fantasy, mystery and a whole new cast of amazing characters. Get ready to take another epic and emotional adventure," DiMartino and Konietzko said in a statement.

The premiere date and casting information will be released later in the year. We do know that the 26 episodes will be split into two books, or seasons, which is similar to how the original shows handled things. It remains to be seen if the series will cap out at 26 episodes or if that’s just the first two chapters. Personally, I wonder if any aged Korra characters will show up. 

The announcement of Avatar: Seven Havens is just the latest news from the franchise. DiMartino and Konietzko are also working on a trilogy of animated movies, with the first one centering on an adult Aang and friends. That one hits theaters on January 30, 2026. Of course, the Netflix live-action adaptation of the original series still has two more seasons to go.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/theres-a-new-avatar-the-last-airbender-cartoon-coming-to-nickelodeon-182956881.html?src=rss

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© Nickelodeon

The Pokémon Company is hosting a morning livestream on February 27 at 9AM ET to share the "latest news and updates" from Pikachu and pals. You can stream it via the official YouTube channel. This is the yearly Pokémon Presents event that typically provides info on what’s coming to empty our wallets throughout the year (and beyond.)

So what can we expect this year? Both The Pokémon Company and Nintendo remain tight-lipped, but we can make some educated guesses. Pokemon Legends: Z-A, the follow-up to the open-world Pokémon Legends: Arceus, was announced in early 2024. It’s high time we got some more details on the upcoming game.

The title was originally advertised as a Switch exclusive, but now that the Switch 2 is on our radar, maybe it’ll be a dual-release or something. We could get that information, along with an announcement regarding the game’s trio of starter Pokémon.

There’s a new Pokémon TGC set arriving in May. It’s called Destined Rivals, so we can expect a detailed look at this update. We might even get a tease for another set down the line. Pokémon cards, both digital and physical, are still very much a big deal. To that end, we could get details regarding new features for TGC Pocket.

Pokémon GO's next season starts on March 4, which is just a few days after the stream. We’ll most definitely get a trailer for that, along with some updates on any new features. Beyond that, it’s a guessing game. Hope springs eternal that we’ll finally get those remakes of Pokémon Black and White. In any event, February 27 is right around the corner.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/theres-a-pokemon-presents-livestream-scheduled-for-february-27-171813096.html?src=rss

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© The Pokemon Company

The Google Pixel 8a mid-tier smartphone is back on sale for $399 via Amazon. This is close to a record-low price and represents a discount of 20 percent. Even better? The sale applies to multiple colorways, including mint green, light blue and white. This deal is for the 128GB model.

This device topped our list of the best mid-range smartphones, and with good reason. It’s a well-designed phone that gets the job done. It features a powerful Tensor G3 chip, offers support for Google Gemini AI tools and includes an excellent camera system. The 120Hz OLED display is gorgeous and the battery life is on point.

We called the Pixel 8a “one of the best values of any phone on sale today” in our official review, and that was at the original $499 asking price. It’s especially well-valued with today’s sale. We even enjoyed gaming with this device, which isn’t always the case with mid-range phones. The 8a also comes with IP67 dust and water resistance and 7.5-watt Qi wireless charging.

There aren’t any major downsides to this phone, though we do have a couple of nitpicks. The wireless charging, while convenient, is pretty slow. The display bezels are also on the thicker side, so you lose some precious screen real estate. Other than that, this is a near-perfect mid-range phone. It’s also a full $200 cheaper than Apple’s just-announced “budget” smartphone, the iPhone 16e.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/googles-pixel-8a-drops-to-399-at-amazon-163059224.html?src=rss

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© Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Twitch has rolled out a number of changes to its violation enforcement system. The biggest change is that now infractions will disappear from an account “after a set amount of time.” This is great news for long-time creators, as minor violations stacked. This led to folks getting suspended as these smaller infractions piled up.

The platform says that most minor infractions, like cheating in an online game, will expire after 90 days. More serious violations, like participating in hateful conduct, will remain on an account for one to two years. The worst behavior will still result in an immediate suspension. Also, if a user is indefinitely suspended due to the accumulation of multiple violations, they can apply for reinstatement after six months.

Twitch

This isn’t any type of “get out of jail free” card. Twitch is also upping the consequences for repeatedly violating the rules in the same policy category. Each time a similar infraction occurs, the length of a suspension will increase. This will be true even if the severity of the offense hasn’t gone up. The platform says this new rule is to help “people understand the importance of adhering to our Community Guidelines without needing to resort to an indefinite suspension.”

Finally, Twitch is making good on its promise for increased transparency regarding policy violations. For most policy violations, users will now get a detailed email regarding the reasoning behind any suspension decision. This data will soon include specific chat messages or stream snippets. The information will also reside in the Appeals Portal. This starts with chat messages, with video clips coming later on.

Most of these changes are rolling out right now. Twitch recently added something called Enforcement Notes that inform users if certain trends violate one of its policies. It also publishes notes to alleviate “widespread community confusion” and alert folks as to which behaviors “are and aren’t out of bounds.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/twitch-community-guideline-violations-will-now-disappear-from-accounts-after-a-set-time-195122034.html?src=rss

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© Unsplash / Caspar Camille Rubin

Instagram is rolling out an update for its messaging system that adds several new tools. These features could allow Instagram to better compete with direct-messaging rivals like Apple iMessage and various third-party platforms.

First up, there’s music-sharing. The update lets users share tunes in both one-on-one messages and group chats. Just open up the sticker tray and tap on the “Music” option. This will open up a search bar of Instagram's audio library. There are a couple of caveats here. The song has to be available via Instagram and clips are maxed out at 30 seconds.

Direct messages will also now have a translation tool that works with 99 languages. The functionality here looks incredibly simple. Users just have to hold down a message and tap “Translate.” The translated message should appear directly below the original one. Easy peasy.

Meta

There’s a new way to pin messages, images or even Reels to the top of chats. Hold down the message and tap “Pin.” Instagram says folks can pin up to three messages per conversation. I could see this being handy to keep oft-requested information at the ready, though it’ll likely be used primarily for memes (not that there’s anything wrong with that.)

Instagram will also let people schedule messages by long-pressing the send button. This can be used to plan messages up to 29 days in advance. Finally, the platform has introduced a way to invite people to a group chat via a QR code. All of these tools begin rolling out today to iOS and Android users worldwide. A web update is in the works but isn’t available just yet.

Instagram sure has been busy adding new features to its software. It recently began testing a dislike button for comments. The platform announced that it was working on a video-editing app, similar to CapCut. The service even expanded the length of Reels to three minutes, likely to compete with TikTok. It also recently got rid of third-party fact checkers.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/instagram-adds-a-whole-slew-of-new-dm-features-in-latest-update-184535399.html?src=rss

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© Meta

The embattled EV truck maker Nikola is going kaput. The company just announced a filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and a plan to sell off assets. These assets will be sold at an auction, pending court approval. Nikola noted it has $47 million in cash on hand to fund the bankruptcy proceedings and begin the sale process. The company has reported between $500 million to $1 billion in assets, but liabilities totaling $1 billion to $10 billion, according to a court filing.

“Like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic factors that have impacted our ability to operate,” said Steve Girsky, President and CEO of Nikola.

Those market and macroeconomic factors are real, as EV adoption growth rates have slowed a bit. However, Nikola is a special case. The company has been embroiled in numerous scandals in recent years, so this news caps off a particularly dire fall from grace for the once-buzzy EV maker.

Nikola was founded in 2015 with a mission to create zero-emissions heavy trucks. The company secured a lucrative partnership with GM in 2020, but things fell apart soon thereafter. It was credibly accused of fraud, thanks to a report by short-selling firm Hindenburg Research. This report even included a video showing a Nikola truck rolling down a hill to simulate driving.

This “elaborate ruse” caused the SEC to begin an investigation which led to founder Trevor Milton stepping down as board chair and CEO. Later, he was arrested and indicted on fraud charges. Milton was found guilty and sentenced to four years in prison. The company settled with the SEC for $125 million. It goes without saying that GM backed out of that partnership.

The company did go public in 2020 and began shipping its first trucks in 2021. However, reports indicated that Nikola was losing hundreds of thousands of dollars on every truck it sold. All told, the company only made around 600 vehicles, many of which were recalled due to a variety of defects.

This subpar performance caused the stock to crater, stumbling from a high of over $1,000 per share to, as of this writing, $0.47 per share. I guess only one company named after the guy who invented alternating current (AC) energy is allowed to consistently fall below expectations without making a dent on its valuation.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/ev-truck-maker-nikola-has-finally-called-it-quits-172516625.html?src=rss

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© Nikola

Annapurna Interactive is holding a games showcase on February 24. It streams live at 12PM ET via the company’s YouTube page. The publisher has released a short teaser video to hold us over until Monday.

This is the first event Annapurna Interactive has held since the entire staff, including the executives, resigned from the company last year. That mass walkout occurred after a failed attempt to spin off the games division from the remainder of the company.

"All 25 members of the Annapurna Interactive team collectively resigned," the team said in a joint statement. "This was one of the hardest decisions we have ever had to make and we did not take this action lightly."

Annapurna hired new people to replace those who left, which was pretty much everyone. This is the first time we’ll get to see what the revamped publishing house has been working on.

So what can we expect? The company says the showcase will be 30 minutes long and will focus on its 2025 lineup of releases. These include titles like Wanderstop, Skin Deep, Wheel World, Faraway, Lushfoil, To a T and Morsels, among others. We are especially excited for Wheel World, which was formerly called Ghost Bike. Faraway also looks pretty cool. Annapurna promises “a few more surprises” in addition to the aforementioned games.

The publisher is primarily known for games like Stray, which recently launched for Nintendo Switch, and What Remains of Edith Finch. It also published Cocoon, Outer Wilds and the absolutely fantastic Lorelei and the Laser Eyes.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/how-to-watch-annapurnas-publisher-showcase-on-february-24-193539718.html?src=rss

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© Annapurna Interactive

Meta just announced its first-ever LlamaCon, a dev conference dedicated to generative AI. It’s scheduled for April 29. Why the llama-based naming convention? The company titled the event after its family of generative AI models.

Meta promises to “share the latest on our open source AI developments to help developers do what they do best: build amazing apps and products.” Beyond that vague description, we don’t know much. There’s no information regarding speakers or potential products being shown. We know that the company’s working on Llama 4, with an early 2025 release window, so we’ll most likely get a sizzle reel of some kind.

The company notes it’ll have more to share about LlamaCon “in the coming weeks.” Meta also says that “2025 is shaping up to be another banger” of a year. To that end, it has scheduled the next major Connect event for September 17. It promises plenty of reveals that should please “virtual and mixed reality developers, content creators, metaverse mavens and AI glasses enthusiasts.” Meta Connect 2024 gave us the Quest 3S and the fancy-pants Orion prototype AR glasses.

According to TechCrunch, Meta has been scrambling to figure out how AI rival DeepSeek has managed to create tech that rivals its own at a fraction of the development cost. The report suggests that DeepSeek’s upcoming models could outperform the aforementioned Llama 4. The company’s also currently embroiled in a lawsuit that accuses it of training Llama models on copyrighted book materials without permission.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/meta-just-scheduled-a-generative-ai-conference-called-llamacon-for-april-29-181351134.html?src=rss

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© Meta

The Nokia Lumia 1020 is back, well, sort of. An enterprising tech enthusiast (and Redditor) has stuffed the innards of an Apple iPhone SE 3 into a Lumia 1020 case to create something called the “NokiApple LumiPhone 1020 SE." This is a fully-functioning smartphone that, more importantly, looks really awesome.

It's more than just an iPhone SE wrapped in a Lumia case. Redditor OceanDepth95028 kicked the project up a few notches by ensuring that the iPhone internals work with a fingerprint reader on the back of the device. They also added a custom SIM card slot and made the Lightning port look like a micro-USB port, as originally reported by 9to5Mac.

Not only does this phone function, it even supports 5G. It also receives OTA updates, which makes sense considering that it’s, essentially, a working iPhone SE 3. The maker had to move some buttons around to get everything to fit and they took liberties with the camera button, which can now act as a volume key switch or a shutter button.

The iPhone SE 3 uses the A15 Bionic chip, so this frankenphone is capable of running modern apps. The gadget’s designer says, despite being a one-off project, this device could be used as an everyday smartphone. The only caveats? The Redditor couldn’t get Apple Pay or wireless charging to work. But still, look at this thing! It’s very pretty, thanks to the design of the original Lumia 1020.

For the uninitiated, the Nokia Lumia 1020 came out in the latter half of 2013. It was one of the more popular phones that ran the now-defunct Windows Phone OS, thanks to its signature look and the fantastic camera system. The iPhone SE is Apple’s budget smartphone and, lo and behold, a new entry is reportedly headed our way in the near future.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/someone-squeezed-an-iphone-se-3-into-a-nokia-lumia-1020-and-it-looks-amazing-162705983.html?src=rss

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© OceanDepth95028 on Reddit

If you're constantly losing your keys, wallet and other important stuff, Bluetooth trackers could be a big help. Attach them onto your things and you can monitor their location directly from your phone. Our current favorites are the Chipolo One trackers, and right now you can snag a pack of four for just under $68. Chipolo's having a sale that brings the pack down to $75, but you can use the code ENGADGET10 at checkout to get an extra 10 percent off and bring the price down to $67.50. That code works across Chipolo's site as well, giving you an additional 10 percent off anything else you want to purchase.

This gadget not only made our list of the best Bluetooth trackers, but it’s our favorite release in the product category. The One is a near-perfect tracker. The battery lasts two full years, it works great with both Android and iOS devices and the ringer is incredibly loud. This is great news for those who tend to misplace items under mountains of linens or between couch cushions.

There’s also no perceptible lag between pressing the Ring to Find button and hearing the trill. This isn’t true of many rival trackers. It even has a handy hole for attaching to keychains and the like. This may seem like an obvious design element, but Apple AirTags lack this hole.

The only downside involves the finding network. Chipolo isn’t a big name like Apple or Samsung, so there are fewer people on the network. This could be an issue if you don’t live in a major metropolitan area. Basically, the One is perfect for looking for lost items in or near the home, but not as useful when searching for misplaced stuff (like luggage at an airport) out in the wild.

And don't forget: remember that coupon code from before? It works across the entire site, so feel free to grab a ten percent discount on everything else Chipolo makes using the code ENGADGET10. This includes wallet trackers that are shaped like credit cards and smaller tracking rings.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/a-four-pack-of-chipolo-one-bluetooth-trackers-is-on-sale-for-32-percent-off-130015389.html?src=rss

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© Amy Skorheim for Engadget

Instagram is testing a new dislike button, which the company has signaled is a way for users to effectively downvote a distasteful or irrelevant comment. The dislike button is only for comments, and not the actual content itself. The platform is testing this with both Reels and Feed posts.

The service will not show a dislike count, though Instagram head Adam Mosseri says that dislikes will eventually contribute to comment ranking. In other words, this feature is most like the Reddit downvote button.

"This gives people a private way to signal that they don’t feel good about that particular comment," Mosseri wrote on Threads. "Our hope is that this might help make comments more friendly on Instagram."

A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch that the primary purpose of the dislike button is to improve the quality of the comment section, echoing Mosseri’s post. This is just a test for now, so the button is only available to a “very small group of people.” It may get a broader rollout down the line.

Instagram has been busy in recent months. Platform representatives announced that it was working on a video-editing app that looks eerily-similar to TikTok’s sibling app, CapCut. The platform even expanded the length of Reels to three minutes, which was seen as another TikTok mimic. It also recently got rid of third-party fact checkers because of freedom or something.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/instagram-is-testing-a-dislike-button-but-only-for-comments-192130246.html?src=rss

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© Alexander Shatov/Unsplash

The next major expansion for Diablo IV won’t come out until 2026, according to remarks made by franchise general manager Rod Fergusson at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas on Wednesday. This isn’t too surprising, given that the first expansion, Vessel of Hatred, didn’t release until the game had been out for 17 months.

Fergusson announced that Blizzard will drop a 2025 roadmap just ahead of Season 8, but that it won’t include any details on the next major expansion. Additionally, he didn’t say when in 2026 it was likely to drop, nor did he provide any details.

Blizzard’s original plan was to put out a new expansion every year, similar to how Destiny 2 handled things in its early run. That idea went out the window when Vessel of Hatred missed the release window by nearly six months. There were bugs that needed to be fixed and community feedback to incorporate. It’s tough maintaining a live-service game.

In any event, I would prefer a polished expansion with plenty of new gameplay mechanics instead of a rushed effort to meet a yearly release quota. The next season of Diablo IV is currently set to go live in April, so we can expect that 2025 roadmap sometime ahead of that. It’s also highly likely we’ll start to get teases for the next expansion later in the year. The hype machine surrounding Vessel of Hatred started up in 2023.

We called Diablo IV “one of the best games” that Blizzard had released in a decade in our official review. The dungeon-crawling mechanics are just about perfect, though we thought the world-building felt a little flat. Vessel of Hatred added a new class and a new area to explore.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/diablo-iv-wont-get-another-expansion-until-2026-194245537.html?src=rss

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© Blizzard

Peacock’s adaptation of the PlayStation classic Twisted Metal was surprisingly fun and I was fairly excited when it got a season two renewal. Now we have an actual trailer for the new batch of episodes and, lo and behold, it focuses almost entirely on the titular tournament.

The first season had a lot going for it. Co-leads Anthony Mackie and Stephanie Beatriz were charming and the episodes were short, focused and fun. One thing fans were left waiting on, however, was the actual Twisted Metal demolition derby. After all, that’s the whole point of the games. The show’s creators, which include folks behind Cobra Kai and Deadpool, have fixed this glaring omission, as season two looks to focus exclusively on tournament-based vehicular combat.

In other words, we can expect a truckload of off-the-wall nonsense when the second season premieres this summer. The trailer shows off plenty of new faces, many of which are culled from the games, and even spotlights the iconic host Calypso (played by Anthony Carrigan from Barry.) The franchise’s mascot, killer clown Sweet Tooth, also returns, still voiced by Will Arnett and performed by the wrestler Samoa Joe.

For the uninitiated, the first season took place in a post-apocalyptic version of the US and involved a cross-country trip. Despite the dystopian setting, the show managed to be goofy and not grimdark. I would classify it as an action-comedy. Twisted Metal joins other modern TV adaptations of video games, like Knuckles, The Last of Us, Arcane and Castlevania: Nocturne.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/the-twisted-metal-season-two-trailer-finally-shows-off-the-titular-tournament-180609928.html?src=rss

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© Peacock